Play a Game of Mine
by Red Stockings
Summary: Innocently, in an attempt not to hurt anyone, Boa begins a dangerous game that will ultimately end with her demise. CarrionBoaFinnegan Complete!
1. Only emptiness inside me

**Won't you come out and play with me?**

**_Summary:_**_ Innocently, in an attempt not to hurt anyone, Boa begins a dangerous game that will ultimately end with her demise. Carrion/Boa/Finnegan_

**Author's Note:** I'm taking liberties with what Clive Barker has told us about this relationship, and am inventing a LOT of events, but I am aiming to keep as close to the book as I can get. (This fic will run parallel to my other fic 'when war consumes us' but only through brief references.)

**Disclaimer: **Most certainly not mine, I am very guilty of stealing, but in admiration!

**_Chapter One:_**_ Only emptiness inside me_

Christopher Carrion was waiting outside in the garden, the sun on his face, a strange mixture; the Prince of Midnight, and the sun. But in this strange happy place he didn't mind it touching his skin, it hurt his eyes, but he didn't mind it; it made him feel warm in his blood, just like she did.

Trying to get an audience with the Princess Boa was hard at the best of times, as she was constantly engaged to do something else; usually at the last minute. But Carrion wasn't going to be defeated, even if it was obvious that some of her excuses were only given because she wished to avoid him. He didn't ask to see her often, even if he did spend a lot of his time at the Twilight Palace on the island of Scoriae, making himself at home even if he was never actually invited; and so when he did, he expected her to comply.

Standing in the sun was now making him dizzy, he wasn't used to it; he had the same disoriented feeling that a daylight person had in the darkness; but she had promised that she would join him soon, sending her usual handmaid down to meet him and give him her message. The poor young girl who was forced to take messages had developed a new skill of disappearing again before Carrion could question her further or complain that he had been waiting long enough already.

Today his temper was fast coming to the end of its leash, and he couldn't bear to be stared at by another passing gardener or kitchen hand a moment longer. Turning around he stomped out of the sweet smelling garden and headed back to where the Wormwood was waiting for him in the water, and without even taking his leave of her parents, Carrion left.

Boa frowned as she reached the garden, her dress long and trailing on the ground. She had given her word to meet the Prince in the garden, but when she had got there he wasn't waiting for her. Stopping a gardener that bowed as he walked past, she asked him if he had seen him.

The short man with the long beard nodded and held the end of his beard in thought.

"Yes M'am, about ten minutes ago, he was here in the garden. I myself am glad he's gone, can't relax when he's around," he told her.

"He has left?" Boa exclaimed worried. She didn't like to offend anyone, and she knew enough of Christopher Carrion to know that he lost his temper easily.

"He's not in the garden Your Majesty," the man told her.

Boa bit her bottom lip between her teeth and looked around. Finally she thanked the man and walked slowly back to the palace. On her way her worried face caught the attention of another visiting party, Finnegan Hobb. He smiled at her warmly as she walked towards him.

"It's not like your face to carry a frown," he said cheerily patting the neck of the large white horse that he rode everywhere, adding to his famous image as the bold knight of both daylight and night time parents.

Boa gave him a small smile, but it was too much of an effort to hold.

"You haven't seen Lord Carrion have you?" she asked as he joined her on her walk back to the palace.

"Oh him? Yes, saw him leaving in that horrible ship of his. Good riddance I say," he said with a slight boastful tone to his voice.

"Don't be rude about him Finnegan, his presence here is an honour to us," Boa said. "At least that's what my parents say anyway."

"Whenever he is here he brings darkness with him, it's unnatural," Finnegan told her.

Boa shook her head at him and climbed up the steps to her home.

"Surely you don't defend him?" he asked incredulously.

"I must write to him," she said speaking to herself.

"You will encourage him!" Finnegan exclaimed angrily.

Boa looked at him surprised at his outburst.

"You will not shout at me Finnegan," she warned, but Finnegan wouldn't be hushed.

"He will do no good for this hour, and his interest in you I find alarming!"

"Well in that case, it is a good thing that it has nothing to do with you then Hobb," Boa said her disposition changing from polite to angry in which was almost a foreign place for her, but when she was there, it was almost always Carrion or Finnegan's doing "I shall bid you good day."

Finnegan didn't know if she did write him, but a few months later Christopher Carrion was back in Scoriae, reading in the library like no time at all had passed. He often wondered how this was benefiting the island. The Lord of Midnight absorbing everything that was in the royal library, arming himself with knowledge that was reserved for the royal family of 7pm. All of this was trouble as far as he could see.

Yet the man never did anything out of place, even if he wasn't very pleasant, he was always well mannered. This irritated Finnegan above all other things, whenever the two of them should meet, he always seemed to end up the loser, no matter what it was. Even when they passed in the corridors, Carrion would stop and let him go past as if he was a lesser being, even if by rights, they were both born Princes.

Carrion would walk around building as if he owned it as well, which angered Finnegan immensely, and would keep up his show of magnificence no matter how many excuses Boa made to avoid seeing him.

In the three months he spent on the island, Boa only spoke to him alone twice, and both times were cut short by events Boa herself had scheduled to happen. It was slowly dawning upon her that his visits to their palace were for more than just the library, and she slowly began to understand why Finnegan had been so outspoken towards her during the conversation in the garden. He'd recognised the Prince's motives long before she did.

"My Lord you are leaving?" Boa asked as Carrion walked past her heading for the main doors. He stopped and turned around; clearly he hadn't noticed her standing there.

"I have stayed too long," he said looking past her. Finnegan had appeared from a door further up the large corridor, and both men were locked in a hard glare.

"I am sorry we didn't talk more," Boa said. Whenever he left, Boa would always be filled with shame for the way she treated him, avoiding someone was a horrible thing to do, yet when he was around her she always felt uneasy.

Carrion didn't answer her.

"Are you returning by sea?" she tried again. Typical, she thought, the only time she tried to have a conversation with him, he was ignoring her. Turning her head to discover why he wasn't paying her any attention, she saw Finnegan standing further up the corridor, watching them.

Boa scowled. Surely she Finnegan didn't think Carrion was a threat to her? She'd known since she was a child, and he had never done anything untoward, not to her anyway.

"I am leaving," Carrion announced before turning his back on them both and walking out of the palace with the masterful air that so became him.

Boa stared after him, happy that he'd finally gone, yet already feeling the familiar feeling of shame burning in her heart. Finnegan was at her side immediately.

"I thought he'd never leave," he said earnestly.

"At least _he_ does go home," Boa mumbled, instantly she regretted it. Finnegan was clearly offended. "I'm sorry Finnegan, I didn't mean that, I..."

"Don't worry Princess, if my being here causes you distress I shall leave. You will have more time to spend alone with Carrion if I do," he said spitefully, turning away from her and heading to his rooms.

Boa hurried after him, aggravated that he taken her words so childishly, even if they had not been very pleasant.

"I never spend anytime alone with Carrion, you know that, and why do you hate him so much? I am sorry for what I said Finnegan, but I cannot stand this hatred between you both, Lord Carrion never says anything discourteous about you..."

"He doesn't have to, he makes it very clear to everyone with his actions," Finnegan said climbing up the stairs, the Princess still following him.

"You haven't answered me," Boa angrily, taking hold of his arm and stopping him on the last step.

Finnegan turned to face her slowly, his expression was grave.

"I hate him because of what he is to you. He wants the same as me, and I know he shall win if I fight him."

"Fight for what Finnegan?" she asked desperately. "Truly he is nothing to me now," she added at his reluctance.

Finnegan took a deep breath, the time he never thought would come _had_ come, and he was to tell her to her truth. The truth to why he was always here, why Carrion was always here, why he was so loathed for them both to be alone together.

"Boa I love you, and I cannot bear for him to be anywhere near you, because he loves you too. I know I can never have those innocent years with you like he did, but I love you no less for their loss," Finnegan said in a rush before Boa stopped him by pressing her lips to his in action that had happened and not been thought-out.

Her eyes were shining, her face glowing. How had it taken so long to be said?

Before Finnegan could even understand that she might feel the same, someone was calling her name, and she was away from him faster than it had all happened. She backed away from him down the stairs shaking her head as she went. When she was far enough away, she spoke.

"I cannot afford to offend him Finnegan."

Finnegan stared after speechless, what was she saying? That she would stop their happiness for Carrion's sake? But it was too late; she was too far away from him now for him to talk some reason into her. Boa walked further down and waited for the person calling her to find her. It was her mother, and she was taken away from him.

Tbc...


	2. Carrion returns

**_Chapter Two: _**_Carrion returns_

Boa slumped in her chair whilst the people around her talked in droning voices; this was supposed to be an important meeting in which they were to discuss where the new donations to the children's foundation were to go, but so far nothing had been resolved. The foundation that had been started by her father King Klaus of Day, had been handed over to her upon her eighteenth birthday, and now one year on she was still enthusiastic about the work she did.

Being the head of the foundation meant mountains of paperwork to be sorted, you couldn't just give people money, you had to have proof of where it come from, that it was legitimate money and that the right amount of tax had been taken and that the correct amount was going where it should, not being skimmed away to line other pockets.

It had been almost six months since she had last seen Carrion, when he had left unexpectedly and without a given reason, but it hadn't been the last time she had seen Finnegan. Hiding in the garden for him to find her, and giggling when he kissed her, knowing she shouldn't be acting in such a way, but not ready to give up the only thing that allowed her to drop her perfect pretence and just be the girl that she was, Boa passed the months away in content happiness.

She didn't know if she loved Finnegan, but she enjoyed the attention he gave her, and the way he doted upon her and followed her every wish. She was fond of him, she knew that much. She liked the way he smiled at her, and the feel of his lips under her fingertips and her own, but she didn't know if it was love, or if it would all come to nothing. But in the days she spent smiling dreamily into her mirror when she brushed her hair, she didn't care.

Pouring over the papers in front of her, Boa knew she needed the people around her to come to some sort of conclusion, so that she wouldn't have to repeat this meeting again just because no one could agree.

"The school in Idjit is falling apart," one of the women said, her voice high in her distress.

"Shouldn't this money go to one of the day islands? We sent money into the night islands last time, and what thanks did we get for that?" someone said.

"We will not discriminate, the foundation is for everyone, and it is terrible, but the night islands tend to need the money more than the day," Boa said wearily. How many times did she need to repeat this? She'd never been on a night island, but she suspected they were just the same as the day, except there was just no light. Even if Scoriae was sometimes a setting sun, or a full one depending on the time of year, it was never pitch black.

"The Princess is right, how can we claim to help all of the children, if we don't?" the woman insisted.

"Isn't Idjit in Lord Carrion's control? Why doesn't he sort out his own orphans?"

Boa stopped yawning as her attention snapped back with the mention of Carrion's name. They never discussed him, it seemed to be a taboo subject, yet someone had broken the silent vow.

"Only in alliance, he has no sway over the actual happenings on the island," someone said informatively.

Boa didn't really know all that much about what the Carrion family actually owned, or had control over, her only connection to them was through her childhood friendship with Christopher. What he was now in control of had never really occurred to her. Thankfully all those around her seemed to be better informed. Clearly none of them spent their time giggling in the garden, or trying to escape the man they were now discussing.

"Midnight is in shambles, it's an absolute mess, there is chaos everywhere!" one man said with conviction in his voice.

"And how do you know that? I don't remember the council giving you money for an expense trip to Midnight!" someone called.

"I passed by on my way home last time we had a meeting, and I tell you, it is terrible," the man insisted.

Boa felt her heart sink. Of all the islands she was trying to help, she had thought Midnight would look after itself. Surely Carrion wouldn't have let it become dilapidated and insufficient? He was too proud to be insulted like that; he would never let it happen, surely not.

"Is Midnight really so terrible?" Boa asked sorrowfully.

"Yes," came the collective reply.

"Has anyone actually been there recently?" she asked again. Nobody answered this time. "Do the children need to be helped?"

Still no one said anything, and Boa felt her faith in them all fall. Her temper flared up, she hated rumours.

"I want nothing more said about Lord Carrion or Midnight, unless you have proof that what you are saying is true, we cannot afford to waste time basing our judgement on rumours or myths," Boa said shortly into the embarrassed silence. "Ladies, Gentlemen, this meeting is over."

There was a ripple of surprise throughout the room, as papers were shuffled, and egos dented. Usually the princess followed their advice to the letter; this dismissal was a shock to them all.

Boa didn't wait around for them all to leave; instead she stood up and left before any of them. Opening the door and walking out, she found Finnegan waiting for her outside; he looked dressed ready for riding.

"Not now Finnegan," she warned before he had the chance to say anything to her. Sighing she leant against the wall and listened to the talking from inside the room she had just left, she knew they were talking about her. There was no law against that, but today she wished there was.

"Boa, you know that you don't have to listen to them," Finnegan said trying to understand what might have happened. "Your father left the foundation to you, you've never gone wrong once, and you've done so much good already."

"But I was following their advice, now they were all in disagreement and I'm left to make the decision on my own," Boa said, her eyes sad and full of worry. Finnegan could see without even trying that this was important to her, and he was horribly aware that he could do nothing that would really help.

"Come riding with me and forget it for now," he said hopefully. Boa shook her head.

"I have to solve this," she told him stubbornly standing by the wall.

Finnegan bit the inside of his lip, boa could worry too much sometimes, and he felt it his duty to relieve some of the burden however he could.

"Solve it on the way," he said taking her hand and not letting her pull away from him. "Oh no Princess, I insist."

Boa let herself be lead outside and into the sun, she followed knowing it was better just to comply rather than have another argument. Finnegan was right, there was no reason why she couldn't think as she rode, and she hadn't been out for so long.

Jumping up into her saddle, she was surprised when Finnegan climbed up behind her and kicked the horse lightly to make it move.

"This is rather improper Finnegan, you should get down," Boa said as her horse made its way slowly out of the stable yard and out into the garden walk.

"No one is going to know, we'll ride down by the docks, no one will be down there," Finnegan assured her.

Urging the horse on faster, Boa felt Finnegan's hand wrap around her middle as they went quicker. The horse snorted as he galloped over the grass and small stones of the meadow by the sea, his hooves hitting the ground with a spring and the familiar sound of rhythmic thuds.

Boa smiled until they reached the dock and she saw which ship was waiting in the harbour. It was too late to switch directions, and by the way she felt Finnegan's hand clamp down protectively on her middle, he was thinking the same. Slowing the horse, Boa couldn't help but smile when she saw the expression on Carrion's face; he clearly hadn't been expecting her arrival. But when he saw Finnegan his countenance changed dramatically.

"Good day My Lord," Boa said in a way that made Finnegan's skin crawl with jealously. She never addressed him as her Lord, and somehow it seemed more inferior to be always just Finnegan.

Boa slipped down from the horse, taking Carrion's hand as he helped her down onto the ground. He stared up at Finnegan as she jumped down in front of him.

"Princess," Carrion said in greeting. He said nothing to Finnegan.

Boa beamed at them both, the ride had lifted her sprits and her face was flushed making her all the more alluring.

"Let me walk with you to the palace," she said beginning the climb up the steps on the side of the harbour that lead to the quickest way to the palace.

Carrion stared after her, cruelly looked back at Finnegan and then followed her. Finnegan held the reigns tightly until his knuckles turned white. He knew Boa was only acting out of politeness, but it still hurt that she preferred to walk with Carrion than ride home with him. Turning the horse around, Finnegan took one last look at his princess before turning back the way they had come.

"Can I ask you something Christopher?" Boa requested as they walked slowly along the town road, the shops and houses lining the way for them. Carrion didn't reply, but looked at her patiently.

"My foundation gives money to help children," Boa said knowing he already knew this, but knowing her question needed some sort of starting point.

"You want me to sponsor it?" Carrion asked.

Boa looked at him surprised, he had even sounded willing to do it.

"I would never ask that of you, it's a big commitment for one man," Boa said trying to return to her own question.

"You are only one person, yet you take on the biggest challenge," he told her.

Again Boa was surprised. Maybe she had avoided him unnecessarily all those other times; he was more pleasant than she remembered.

"I am not only one person, I have advisors..."

"You do not rely on them for every decision you make?"

Boa blushed down at the ground. She wished she could be as confident as the Prince of Midnight. She wondered what it felt like to never doubt your own decisions, just to have the conviction to make them.

"They are all in disagreement, and it concerns you," Boa said. Carrion stopped walking and Boa was forced to stop also. She didn't like the way he was looking at her, it was threatening, as if he was ready to defend himself in some violent way. "They say Midnight needs our help, is this true?"

"Midnight needs no help from you," he replied without even considering what she was saying. "It is a different place, you would not understand it. It's not money that is lacking, it is light."

Boa frowned. She took Carrion's words literally, and wondered why Midnight couldn't get enough light. Could the electric not work in some places?

"I was speaking of the children..."

"I have only been in power a year, every decision I make is either condemned by the rest of you or criticized by my Grandmother, and now you insult me today."

"I didn't mean..."

"I didn't come here to see you, I came to see your father," Carrion added maliciously, walking past her and continuing up the road faster than Boa could go without running.

"Fine," she called after him, then changing her mind hurried after him. She seemed to spend her whole life running about after people. "Wait, Christopher..."

He didn't wait for her, and Boa was forced to run round to the front of him and push her hands into his chest to stop him.

"The school on Idjit, will you give me your permission to help them?"

Carrion started when she touched him, and when her hands remained on his chest, he felt his heart beat even faster.

"Idjit is out of my control."

"But you don't protest?"

"Not if you insist upon it."

They were close to the palace now, and Boa could see the large gates further up the road. Letting her hands fall down to her sides slowly, Boa bowed her head.

"I am sorry, I should never have said anything about Midnight, and it was not my place. I am ill informed," Boa said trying to appease him. Slipping her arm under his and continuing to walk, Boa's action stopped him from replying. Feeling her smaller body bump into his every now and then stopped Carrion from thinking, and he rested his other hand over hers in an attempt to keep her there, forever.

Tbc…


	3. A misunderstanding of interests

**Chapter Three**: A misunderstanding of interests

Boa walked with her head bowed as they entered the Twilight palace. She tied to ignore the strange looks she received from the servants, having seen her leave with one man and return with another.

"This certainly is a change," Carrion said leading the way with his steps always being slightly ahead of hers.

"I'm sorry?" Boa asked aware that even though they were inside she was still holding his arm. She should have let go at the door, but she had been too distracted, and it would seem rude if she was to pull away now.

"You usually cannot wait to get away from me, I am hard pressed to imagine this transformation is of your own doing," Carrion said in a voice that Boa had to consider before she could understand if it was in jest or not. Even after a few seconds of silence, Boa still didn't know.

"I don't understand you my Lord," Boa said bringing them to a stop in the empty hallway.

"Did daddy tell you stop avoiding me?" Carrion asked cruelly making Boa frown.

"No," she answered puzzled. "Why would you think that?"

Carrion smiled in a forced way, which didn't look very friendly at all. Clearly he was trying to keep his words calm, as Boa could see he desperately wanted to say something but was trying to find a politer way of phrasing it.

"You obviously do not wish to be walking down this hallway with me. I know you take delight in avoiding me at every opportunity; I will not spoil that for you. You have only walked with me so far because you hope that by doing so it will prevent me from telling your father about your little outing with Hobb."

Boa gasped and snatched her arm from him instantly. How could he know so much truth, yet be so wrong at the same time?

"You make me sound heartless!" Boa said, tears at the back of her eyes. From the shock of his words her voice became nothing but a strained whisper.

Carrion sneered, took a step away from her and then stopped and turned back.

"You have humiliated me too often Princess. I am here to see your father, I bid you good day," he said bowing to her in a mockery of everything she was and then continuing to walk along the hallway.

"Christopher don't!" she called after him. She didn't know what she meant by 'don't'. Don't walk away, don't tell my father, don't hate me? But it was the only word that would come to her.

As soon as Carrion was too far away to be called back, even should she scream, she heard a noise behind her, belonging to the last person she wanted to see at that moment.

"So," Finnegan said his arms folded and his legs crossed casually as he leant against the wall behind her. "_Christopher_ now is it?"

Boa didn't understand why Finnegan was speaking in such a sarcastic tone. It wasn't forgivable like when Carrion used it. Usually when Carrion spoke Boa felt she deserved it, but Finnegan was only causing her distress. She wished Finnegan would stop looking at her like he was.

"It's always been Christopher, I've known him since we were children," Boa said. It sounded simple to her, surely Finnegan would understand now.

"I thought you said he was nothing to you now?" he asked taking a step forward. When he saw Boa back up he stopped. He hadn't meant to frighten her, even if he was angry.

"Well he isn't!"

"Then why call him by his first name?" Finnegan demanded.

A pair of chambermaids, who had found themselves in that part of the castle at that particular moment, stopped in the hallway and stared at them, waiting for Boa's answer.

"Because," Boa began uncertain. She didn't really know the answer, she didn't do it intentionally, it just came out of her mouth when he wouldn't answer to anything else. "Because sometimes it's all I can do to make him listen to me!"

"Well it didn't work this time did it?" Finnegan said spitefully.

"Why are you being like this? You know you are everything to me Finnegan," Boa said quietly so that the listeners wouldn't hear.

"What was your next move Princess? Let's say I didn't find you after you were shamelessly calling 'Christopher' for all to hear, what would you have done next? Run after him?" Finnegan shouted flaying his arm in the direction Carrion had walked in.

"I don't know," Boa answered honestly. "And you didn't answer me Finnegan."

"You want to know why I am angry with you? Well let me tell you Boa. You slighted me in front of Carrion. A man I despise more than you will ever know! A man who threatens to take you from me!"

At this Boa laughed, it seemed too ridiculous not to be joke. She didn't understand why he was upset, by all accounts it seemed to be his pride that was hurt not him. But Finnegan wasn't amused by her laughter, the harsh look on his face made Boa feel stupid and then angry.

"This is all pride!" she accused him. "Well I am sorry if your ego took a dent Finnegan, but I don't think that should be any concern of mine."

Finnegan scowled and turned his back on her. But Boa wouldn't call him back as she had done Carrion. She wouldn't wait for him to leave either, but turned around herself and walked in the direction Carrion had gone. Her purposeful steps showed everyone that she wanted no company. She didn't care if Finnegan thought she was going to find Carrion or not, but if he did she felt he deserved to worry after the way he had acted.

Boa stirred her soup round and round the bowl until a servant leant over and took it away. She was about to complain, when she realised everyone's first-course was being taken away.

"Ladies and Gentlemen," King Klaus said standing and raising his glass. "It is, as I'm sure you're all aware, the anniversary of my marriage to my dear wife, your Queen."

There were cheers at this, but Boa blanched and slumped her shoulders forward in an attempt to make herself seem smaller. She'd completely forgotten the reason so many people were at the dinner. It was probably why Carrion had returned too; he'd been forced by duty to return, even though his sense of duty obviously didn't stretch to actually _attending_ the dinner. This gave Boa a scared cold feeling inside her, he had come to see her father after all, he hadn't come back for her.

"And so, please join me in a toast, and enjoy the entertainment I have arranged for this evening," the King said to an enthusiastic applause.

Boa looked around the room, everyone was continuing to eat and drink excessively, the music grew slowly louder, or so it seemed that way to Boa. The more wine that was gulped, the louder the room became until people were shouting at one another to be heard. Boa spotted Finnegan laughing with the men and women on his table, as if he was doing so to spite her.

"Father?" Boa asked dragging him away from his conversation. "Did you speak to Prince Carrion today?"

King Klaus swallowed a mouthful of wine from his glass and nodded.

"Yes, he came to see me today, what a strange fellow he is. Not a word from him in ages, and then he turns up out of the blue! How he knew it was today I have no idea, I didn't send out any invitations. It was supposed to be a small affair this year…"

"Oh," Boa said looking about. "Perhaps he remembered from last year." Boa added trying to turn the conversation back to Carrion without it being too obvious.

"Yes, perhaps he did," he said nodding and smiling at the people who were looking up at them and lifting their glasses.

"He didn't attend tonight," Boa said her voice dripping a octave into sarcasm.

"Well he never does, can't think why," he replied frowning into his glass as he swirled the drink around. "Seemed a little out of sorts today."

Boa choked mid-swallow and set down her glass.

"W-what do you mean?" she asked quickly. "Did he say something?"

But Boa didn't get a reply, as King Klaus was now busy talking to someone else. Boa turned her attention back to the room and realised she had to leave it. She knew exactly what she wanted to do once she was outside, and couldn't wait another moment.

Standing, she nodded to the people who looked up at her, sidled past the acrobats and jugglers and made her way to the main doors. All the way she felt Finnegan's eyes upon her, accusing and questioning as she walked, and as the doors closed behind her she felt immense relief.

As she walked up the corridor, Boa pulled the heavy earrings from her ears, unfastened the garishly gold necklace and undid the clips in her hair. By the time she reached her room all of her sparkling accessories were in her pocket. Locking her bedroom door, Boa debated what to do next.

When she had had the mind to leave the dinner, her thoughts were all about finding Carrion. Now in her room, with the door closed behind her, Boa felt like going to sleep rather than doing anything else.

Not only did she not actually know where Carrion stayed when he was a guest, since she had never before felt the need to go looking for him and certainly never at this time, Boa wasn't even sure he'd receive her anyway. Not only had she angered him, but also he'd had a long journey and was most likely was asleep.

Deciding it was safer just to go to bed herself, Boa began to undress, throwing her dress over the back of the chair and pulling her nightdress over her head. Sitting down in front of her mirror, she brushed the kinks and knots out of her hair and then rubbed sweet smelling moisturiser into her skin. Slumping back in her chair, Boa stared at her reflection.

After tilting her head side to side and pulling faces to see how she looked, Boa frowned and closed her eyes. Her aim was to sit quiet long enough to shake all the thoughts from her mind and think about sleep instead, but she found herself waking to the sound of shouting from the floor below.

Startled, Boa opened her door and peered outside. The weak light from the windows illuminated the metallic bits on picture frames, the grey slate tiles on the floor, and made shadows in corners. There was no one in the hall, and so Boa began to go in search of the noise.

A young looking maid came around the corner in such a hurry, that Boa was forced to the side in order for them not to collide.

"What is happening?" Boa demanded as soon as the shock of having to jump out of the way had subsided.

"Oh Miss!" the maid said curtsying. "They've all had too much to drink. The butler is having a right old go at the horse-master!"

It took Boa a few seconds of thought to understand this, not totally familiar with the girl's terminology.

"Right, well thank you," Boa replied continuing on her journey down the hall. As she walked she passed the library, and seeing a light on inside and the door slightly ajar, Boa looked inside. She observed someone sat at the large writing desk, on one of the many chairs in the room that turned all the way around should you need it to.

Boa knew she couldn't ignore this opportunity, and stepping inside she only managed to get his attention by shutting the large carved wood door and sending an echoing boom around the room.

Carrion looked up from his book, returned to reading, and then, as if he had just processed what he'd seen, looked up again slightly less composed than usual. Boa felt his eyes sweep over her nightdress, or lack of nightdress, for it barely reached her knees or covered her shoulders. It certainly wasn't what she wanted to be wearing for a meeting with Carrion, but she had acted in a hurry and hadn't thought to bring her dressing gown.

"I thought you might be asleep," Boa stated, her back pressed against the cold door.

Carrion's eyes seemed to be stuck on the hem of her nightdress, and Boa felt herself shiver as he shut the book making another echoing thud in the room. She could already feel her face turning red, and was thankful when he decided to stare at her face after looking everywhere but.

"In the library?"

"In your room obviously," Boa replied rolling her eyes.

At this she thought she saw him visibly gulp, the kind of thing that is only ever portrayed in nervousness situations in novels. Then she realised why, as she suddenly took in everything from his perspective. She heard her words in her own ear, and saw her own appearance in her mind.

According to her she had been wandering about the castle, gone to his room hoping to find him abed, in her nightdress. She couldn't have got anymore suggestive had she tried.

"I wasn't suppose to arrive in my nightdress, there—there was a disturbance," Boa said trying to rescue herself from whatever he might have thought of her seconds ago.

"You call that a nightdress? That is the smallest nightdress I have ever seen!" Carrion said a slight smile on his face.

A cross of being embarrassed and angry, Boa couldn't help but retaliate. Even if she knew he was giving her a way out of the embarrassment. Yet she couldn't help but drag it back down.

"How many have you seen?"

There was stony silence in the room now, Carrion continued to stare at her but it wasn't friendly. Far from embarrassing him, she's only succeeded in embarrassing herself.

"Well you can buy me another one if you like," she said into the silence.

Boa grimaced inside herself, she was making this worse, what exactly was she thinking? She might of well asked him to buy her underwear. If she had been alone she would have bashed her head repeatedly into a wall by now.

She couldn't help but picture a family scene of some kind where the line 'Oh don't worry mother, I'm not spending all my allowance on fancy clothes, Christopher bought it for me!' would feature. She couldn't help but think that wouldn't down well.

However Carrion seemed to find that suggestion more palatable than the last.

"Favourite colour?"

Boa just smiled, hoping he would just take it as a joke and not insist upon it. She was feeling very stupid now.

"So," he said reopening his book and picking up his pen before writing something down. "Apart from begging for new clothes, what do you want with me Princess?"

Boa rubbed the side of her neck nervously.

"I just wanted to say I'm sorry. I've behaved appallingly to you, and I wish that you would forgive me."

Carrion continued to read and made another note.

"Will you not say something?" Boa asked worried.

Carrion looked up at her.

"What am I to say?" he asked.

"Say you forgive me!" Boa insisted stepping away from the door.

"I cannot."

Boa felt the tears forming in her eyes _again_, she couldn't bear to be hated.

"But why?" she asked tearful sounds in her words. But Boa had the feeling she had pushed him too far, she could feel the room become potent with the sense of expectation. She wasn't wrong either.

"Because I don't want to be your friend anymore!" he snapped, slamming the book closed making Boa jump from the loud sound it made.

He was standing now, but Boa wouldn't back down.

"Then I hate you!" she screamed, tears flooding from her eyes. "I hate you!"

Boa didn't know how, but he had managed to close the distance between them even before she had managed to wipe the tears from her eyes, and without warning he had her pushed backwards into the unforgiving door.

Gasping from the sharp shock of pain she received in the bottom of her spine, Boa found herself kissing him. Or he was kissing her, she couldn't tell. He wasn't gentle with her, he had her pinned and wasn't letting go, no matter the amount of resistance Boa tried to make at the beginning.

It didn't take long before her skin felt too hot, and her body too heavy, like the dizzying feeling of illness when the mind seems detached from oneself. She could feel his tongue on her bottom lip, but she didn't dare move her own. She didn't quite know what to do with it for a start, and rather than worry about what she was doing, she found herself worrying about not being able to do it.

Just as she thought she couldn't embarrass herself anymore with her inexperience, that was most obviously showing through, Carrion released her and stepped away. Boa stared up at him wide-eyed, and her hand slowly went to her mouth in disbelief.

"Go back to your room Boa," he told her his eyes the darkest she'd ever seen them.

Taking a deep breath, Boa turned, fumbled with the handle and hurried out. She wished with her whole heart that she could have someone to talk to that would understand just how she was feeling. But who would understand? Anyone she could speak to would see her as just a stupid girl.

Never had she been kissed like that, with Finnegan it was all giggles and fun. She had been held still, or made to feel so helpless. With nowhere to go, or no one to talk to, Boa had no choice but to wrap her arms about herself and lay down on her bed.

A/N: Ooops that's not the smartest move to make. Poor Boa, I'm starting to feel sorry for her now, yet at the same time, not really.

Ps, would there be such a thing as a 'night'dress in the Abarat? For the lack of a better word I had to use it. The Abarat is a very confusing place….


	4. Confessions I

**Chapter Four: Confessions**

Boa awoke to the horrible feeling of being the stupidest person in the Abarat. How had she managed to make such a mess of everything in just one day? How had she managed to let it happen? How could she have just stood there and let such a thing happen to her? What was wrong with her?

Boa could feel the hot stinging tears of humiliation forming at the back of her eyes, swelling them and making her vision blurry the disgrace. A few days ago everything had been so simple, she had been happy with Finnegan and had seen life as a straight line, now it was jagged with problems all caused by Carrion's return.

She didn't excuse her herself from the blame, yes Carrion had been the one to initiate the kiss, but she hadn't done anything to make him think it was unwelcome, in fact she had even responded, and it hadn't been reluctantly either. Now in the unclouded waking morning, Boa saw clearly how stupid she had been to even let him come near her.

She had started something now, and she wasn't sure how to finish it. One thing was for certain as she sat shaking, she couldn't keep this to herself.

Climbing out of bed, her tears falling faster the more she thought of her sorry state, Boa pulled on her clothes with the heaviest of hands. It seemed as if her body didn't want for her to be awake today, and if it had it's way she would be hiding under the blankets, staying there forever and ever, never coming out, never facing the consequences of what she had done.

Finnegan was in the gardens when she found him, and trying her best to hide her tears, Boa hurried towards him. His steely expression melted as soon as he saw she was upset. He might had have been angry with her still, but it didn't stop him caring for her.

"Princess," he said holding out his arms for her, even though they had agreed never to embrace in public.

Boa's strong resolve disappeared as she fell into his arms and cried even harder. She let him hold her, unknowing of what she had done. Just let him hold me this last time, before he hates me forever, Boa told herself as she sought comfort from his arms, not caring for one second if anyone saw them.

"Oh Finnegan, I have done something terrible," she said looking down at the floor and stepping back from him with a slow motion.

Finnegan looked at her quizzically, he couldn't think of anything she might have done that was cause for tears.

"It cannot be worth your tears, nothing would ever be worth those," he said wiping the salty trails from her cheeks.

This only caused her eyes to form a new shield of tears, why must he be so nice?

"This is," she whispered. "But first, please tell me you love me, just one last time."

"What do you mean last time? What are you talking about?" Finnegan demanded, he was worried now; it wasn't like Boa to be so melancholy. "Come," he said leading her into the horse stable yard and shut the large door-gate. "Now tell me."

Boa bit her bottom lip between her teeth. There was no doubt in her mind that this was the right thing to do. Finnegan had a right to know, even if he was to hate her forever for it, she would never be able to live with herself if he didn't ever know. Besides, her only friend was Finnegan; and if you counted Carrion, well then him too. She had no one to advise her, and no one else to speak to.

Boa knew the best way to tell him was just to say it, yet the words wouldn't come. She couldn't bear to think that those eyes that were looking at her now with so much care could turn to hate at any moment.

"Carrion was in the library last night," she said quietly. She averted her eyes for a moment as Finnegan's face made a slight twitching movement. Could he guess what was coming next? "I wasn't looking for him, I just found him there."

"And?" Finnegan prompted, his eyes turning hazy with rage, not for Boa, but for the idea of Boa and Carrion alone. "Well, there's more isn't there? Yes?"

Boa just looked at the floor, how could she stop now? Yet how could she proceed? Saying it out loud just confirmed how much of a stupid fool she had been.

"Well?" Finnegan shouted. This was too much for Boa and she began shouting too.

"He kissed me! … Ok?"

"Ok?" Finnegan shouted back. "Ok? What the hell do you mean ok? What's ok about that? What, am I supposed to agree?"

"No of course not," Boa said indignant. "I didn't mean..."

Finnegan took a step back from her before he did something he regretted. He was so angry that he couldn't even think. Boa sat down on a bale of hay and covered her face in her hands.

"What were you thinking? Don't I mean anything to you?"

"Of course you do Finnegan, that's why I'm telling you. I didn't mean it!"

"Oh you didn't mean it…well that's alright then. What were you thinking?" Finnegan shouted.

Boa hugged herself as if her stomach was in pain and looking up at with a tearstained face.

"I couldn't help it Finnegan, I didn't know what to do," Boa sobbed looking up at him as he paced on the cobbled floor.

Finnegan threw his hands up in frustration. He tried his best not to be angry at Boa, but how could he not be? He felt like she had betrayed him some how, even if what she claimed was true, that it was Carrion that had kissed her. He could never imagine it being the other way round, but still he couldn't help but feel betrayed.

"You could have said no," he said still pacing in an attempt to calm down.

"I'm sorry," Boa whispered. What could be said now? Finnegan knew the truth, he didn't know her inner most feelings, but he knew what he should know. What was left to say?

Finnegan sat down beside her, Boa shied away from him not feeling worthy of him being so close.

"You don't care for him… do you?" he asked uncertain, his voice calm once more. Boa wiped her eyes with the back of her hand.

"Not like I care for you," she replied shaking her head slightly. "I thought perhaps we could be friends, just like we were when we were children, I didn't believe anything you said about…" Boa paused, she wasn't sure if she should proceed with this thought, but she decided it couldn't get any worse than it was and took a deep breath and continued. "I'm so stupid. I just refused to believe what you said, even when I knew… I knew it all along. Why am I so stupid?"

There was a long silence.

"What are you going to do now?" Finnegan asked. Boa looked up at him confused. "You told me once, you couldn't afford to offend him."

Boa looked away.

"I haven't thought…" she admitted. "I _cannot_ afford to offend him, but I cannot lie either."

"I understand," Finnegan replied through gritted teeth.

Boa could hear in his voice how much she had hurt him, he was doing his best to accept what had happened, but he couldn't disguise his pain. Boa could see his calm demeanour was not going to last long, he was still angry underneath and she was waiting for it to explode, any moment now.

After a long pause in which the reality or what had happened finally sank into Finnegan, his posture became less steady and he began to shake with rage.

"How dare he!" he shouted finally, jumping up in a sudden movement. "I'll kill him! I swear it!"

"No, Finnegan please," Boa pleaded. "It was _my_ fault."

"No! He has manipulated you ever since he arrived here, making you feel like you owed him something, it cannot go on, I won't allow it!"

"Finnegan you cannot fight him, I won't let you. He won't be fair; he's not fair with anything. If you fight him he'll kill you, and I cannot live without you," Boa screamed fresh tears running down her face, she would have said anything to keep him in that courtyard.

She wasn't lying when she said Carrion would kill him, she really believed he would.

"You want me to do nothing? Just to sit still whilst he does this to you?" he asked his eyes glazed with fury and his muscles tensed ready for fighting.

"You mustn't do anything, if my father finds out and he banishes Carrion then we could have a war on our hands, and think of all those innocent people who would die, all because of me," Boa said feeling even more wretched the more she spoke. "No, I got myself into this, I'll get myself out."

"I wish you would just let me help you."

"Finnegan, I really don't think hitting him is going to help," Boa said with a small smile.

"Yes, well it would make me feel a lot better," he said before laughing to himself. The laughter didn't last long. "Come away with me."

"What?"

"Come away with me, now, right now!" Finnegan repeated.

"Run away?" Boa asked looking around nervously. Finnegan nodded. "No, I can't."

Finnegan's smile faded.

"I know," he said sadly. "I know."

They looked at each other despondently for a while in silence. Finally Finnegan held out his hand.

"No more tears, right?"

Boa looked at him with new hope in her eyes.

"You're not angry?" she asked with half a frown.

Finnegan just wrapped an arm around her and held her close to him.

"I love you Boa, I'd forgive you anything, just as long as you promise me that your heart is mine and not his."

Boa didn't promise, but just smiled. How could she promise something like that?

_Author's note_: Slightly less fun than last chapter, but don't fret we haven't seen the last of Carrion yet; everything's going to get a whole lot more awkward now.

_Scraper_: Thank you!

_Kisara The Angel of Music_: I shall get round to finishing reading your story, I'm half way through it so far, you shall get a review from me. Thank you for your comments and I fixed that typo.


	5. Meeting the Guards Or Walking the Dog

**AN: **Ahh, attack of the dreaded writers block. Anyway, finally, here's the next chapter! Thank you for the reviews.

Chapter Five

**_Meeting the Guards Or Walking the Dog_**

Her father's old dog was pulling at it's lead, as Boa walked sluggishly behind it, holding the end of the lead in a lazy grip. The lead was wrapped around her fingers in such a way that it was turning her hand red, but he didn't care, her mind was on other things. Finnegan might have forgiven her, but she still felt uneasy around him. She had left him on his own in the palace whilst she accompanied her mother and father out on their weekly walk, the one time in the week that neither had any duties to do.

For a while she had been making excuses for joining them, walking along in the muddy wood wasn't something she enjoyed doing, but today she would have agreed to anything that kept her out of the palace, and out of certain people's ways.

"Boa, don't go too far ahead dear," he mother called from behind.

Boa started, she hadn't realised she'd go on ahead so far, and stopped to let them catch her up. As soon as they were near her the dog pulled even harder to make her move again, and Boa sighed and began following behind it once more.

"You don't look happy Boa," he father observed frowning, he clasped his hands his back as he walked and waited for a reply.

"I'm fine thank you," she said trying to smile but not really managing it.

Her father wasn't fooled.

"You're not fine, you haven't been fine all morning, maybe you need something to take your mind off things, I've heard you've been having problems with your charity,…" he ventured carefully.

Boa scowled.

"I can take care of that myself."

"That's not what your father means Boa, of course you are able, it's just that we don't want you worrying too hard over it. Maybe if you take a little break? A party of some kind, you can invite your friends!"

Boa's scowl fell into a look of despair.

"What friends? I don't have any _friends_, just Christopher and Finnegan? What a riveting party that would be…" Boa said imagining the silence that would be in that room whilst she handed out cakes and wondered what the point of getting up that morning had been.

"Don't be silly, you have lots of friends!" her mother insisted.

Boa didn't like to interrupt again, after all she did need something to take her mind off things, but not for the reasons they thought.

Boa dragged her feet along; if her parents wanted to arrange a party she couldn't be bothered to stop them. She only hoped they wouldn't go making it a big affair, one that people would feel they had to attend for fear of becoming out of favour.

She walked without listening until what they were saying caught her attention and she tried to pick up the thread without them noticing.

"Yes, so I said, well if you feel you must but I really didn't see the point myself, but I suppose it's important to him. After all, when you spend most of your life crossing backwards and forwards you want to know it's safe," her mother said without noticing she had her daughter's attention. "I have to say though, he was very polite today, usually I dare not say anything in case I rile him. No, most pleasant…"

"See my dear, I told you he's not all bad…"

"Yes, but you talk about things he's interested in, I just offer him cups of tea, he must think I'm obsessed with tea."

Boa was sure they were talking about Carrion, but what worried her were the references to the fact that he had gone somewhere and was not in the palace. Panic struck her. She was in her most unattractive clothes, covered in mud and walking a scabby old dog, if he was to see this way she would be mortified. Worse of all she had failed to put on her make-up that morning, too intent on seeing Finnegan and escaping. She had never appeared before Carrion in such a state, and was finding herself dreading his reaction.

"So will he join us later?" her father asked.

Boa gasped, and then coughed to try and disguise it. He was joining them?

"I'm not feeling very well, I think I'll go back," Boa decided pushing the dog lead at her confused mother.

"Boa?"

Boa refused to stop for their questions, dug her hands in her pockets and walked quickly back through the mud, or as quick as she could. On her way she swapped the path she was taking for a less muddy one that took her around the wood rather than through it.

Her action was automatic and it took her closer to the docks than she would have liked, but before she could change her mind and double back she happened upon the person she was desperately trying to avoid. Great she thought, what were the chances?

Boa's eyebrows shot up in exasperation, but she kept her eyes on the floor. She knew she was being rude, she should signal that she acknowledged him, with a nod or a small curtsy, but she was frozen.

"Good morning," he said finally. Boa looked up slowly, taking him in from his boots upwards. She became stuck on his coat buttons. She was sorry she'd made him have to greet her first, but at least he was being polite even if she wasn't.

"Hello," she mumbled not daring to move. "I was on my way home…I'm not feeling well… I should go now…excuse me."

She made a move to go around him, but he stopped her with his hand on her shoulder. This action forced Boa to look up, and she wished she hadn't as she could see pain in Carrion's eyes.

Her heart felt for him instantly, and her face took on a look of concern. Something had happened to make him show her this, but then again did he mean for her to see? Boa didn't know, but she had the horrible feeling that their last meeting hadn't helped matters.

"What's the matter?" she asked standing just out of reach from him, just in case he tried to touch her again.

"Nothing, your father invited me to join him after I had attended some business, so here I am, I am disappointed that you are leaving, but so you always leave when I am near you," he replied in such a steady way that Boa frowned slightly. She couldn't tell from his voice if he was angry, upset, or more than likely, but still unproven, making fun of her.

"That isn't true, I…"Boa paused, apart from the encounter in the library it was true, but she wasn't going to mention anything about that. "I just have things to do…"

"Like sorting out your _children's foundation."_

This made Boa angry, he had no right to bring that into question, what she did was her own business, she didn't need people looking over her shoulder and criticising.

"Well if you sorted out your own hour I wouldn't have such a problem, do you know they all think you're a insane ruler who never thinks of his people? It's only because of me that they haven't caused you problems, and do you know why? It's because I honestly think you do care, even if you have a stupid way of showing it!" Boa snapped, staring at him coldly and then stomping past.

It was only when she got a few steps away from him that she realised she must have looked like a wild thing, shouting and flailing her arms whilst looking a state. She dug her hands in her coat pocket and hung her head. Carrion wasn't going to come after her and a cold feeling settled in her stomach as she realised she was walking alone. One by one the tears started falling from her eyes.

Why couldn't she ever rid herself of him? Every time she told him what she really thought of him she was instantly hit with guilt for doing it. She supposed some part of her still thought of him as her childhood friend who used to throw bags of flour out of tower windows, and put worms in people's shoes. But those days had long a go disappeared, what they were now Boa didn't understand.

Carrion stood watching her walk away from him, he wasn't a fool, he knew their last meeting was what had created the tension and the anger, but without any explanation he was at a loss as how to react. He couldn't tell if Boa was really avoiding him, or if she really was on her way home. She didn't make sense at the best of times, but he should have known better than to provoke her today, but stupidly he hadn't been thinking.

"Wait!" he called after her, abandoning his direction and taking hers back to the palace. "I said wait."

"I don't want to talk anymore Christopher, I'm not feeling well…" she told him as soon as he'd caught her up. "Just leave me alone."

"You are going to talk to me," he said grabbing her arm roughly. Boa felt herself being yanked sideways and gave a yelp.

Instantly the surrounding trees became chaotic with the sounds of rustling, shouted orders and bodies appearing from almost everywhere. If Boa had screamed before it was nothing to what the soldiers inspired in her.

"To the princess!" they called as they run towards her.

As they came closer, Boa realised they were heading straight for Carrion, although unlike her he didn't seem all too worried.

"No! Go back, go back!" Boa shouted flinging her arms about Carrion's middle as if that would save him from the twenty or more guards running at him.

Burying her head in his chest and closing her eyes on the world, Boa waited to be grabbed and flung out of the way, but the heavy hands never came.

The weak light in the sky illuminated the shining weapons they were brandishing above their heads, and their boots thudded through the mud in squelching sounds.

However before they managed to get anywhere close enough to harm Carrion, noiselessly they were intercepted by a smaller number of silent Midnight bodyguards. Noticing that the noise had stopped, Boa opened an eye and then the other and clung onto to Carrion as if she had forgotten who he was, her body shaking with shock.

Carrion hadn't been all too concerned when the soldiers had emerged from the trees, he had known they were there, they followed the Royal family wherever they went for they safety, just like his own bodyguards followed him. The noise that they had made coming out of the trees had given away their inept skills immediately, Carrion had many personal guards, all or which he had overseen their instruction himself, silence was key. Rushing out into the open was the worse mistake you could make.

Rather than feel thankful that he was alive, his first thoughts were Boa's safety, from now on he'd have his guards watch her as well, he couldn't trust these incompetent soldiers with her life. He moved his arm around her gently before she noticed, and stood with her head pressed firmly against his chest. He doubted she was paying attention, but he knew she would be able to hear his heart beating faster than normal should she listen.

"Call them off" he spoke gently into her ear. Boa shuddered and tilted her head up to look at him.

"Oh my Lord, they were going to kill you!"

"Call them off," he repeated just as gently, and waited for Boa to become master of her fear to follow his instruction.

Tears running down her face again, Boa looked over to the soldiers facing the Midnight guards, each party awaiting orders to strike or walk away. Swallowing hard, Boa caught the eye of one of the men ready to fight for her.

"Please, put down your swords, I am fine," she said not knowing what command she should really be giving, should she thank them? Or did they do something wrong? This had never happened before. "I am fine."

"We will escort the Princess to where ever she is going, please return to your _covert_ mission," one of the Midnight guards said sarcastically.

The man Boa had spoke to looked at her for confirmation, and when Boa nodded he made a small nod and turned around and lead the rest of the soldiers back along the path she had come along before meeting Carrion.

"Happens often does it?" Carrion asked as Boa finally let go of him.

"You grabbed me, what did you expect?" Boa retorted. It was a stupid question, as even Boa hadn't expected anything of the kind to happen, and she knew Carrion knew it too.

"Full of surprises, aren't you."

Boa blushed; she didn't need him to tell her that he was referring to her improper behaviour in the library. Quickly her embarrassment turned to anger, that was his fault then, and it was his fault now; she wasn't going to let him blame things on her and not himself.

"Well don't rush to thank me, I just saved your life after all!" she told him, folding her arms.

Carrion looked as if he was trying not to laugh, but he soon gave up and made Boa feel even smaller.

"Still going home?"

This confused Boa even further.

"You're not mad? You were almost killed, and once again I have been being most rude to you…" she asked frowning.

Carrion said nothing.

"Yes I'm going home…"

Still Carrion said nothing, but finally made a short bow.

"Farewell then," he said before turning his back on her and finally walking to meet her father.

Boa felt like shouting, _fine get lost then_! But managed to keep her insult under control, she didn't want a repeat of earlier happening all over again. But still something juvenile in her wanted revenge on his abrupt goodbye, so that it wouldn't be him who had had the last word.

Bending down Boa picked up a small pebble, not feeling too ruthless she wiped the mud off first on her coat and then threw it Carrion. The small stone bounced off his shoulder, but hit hard enough to make him feel it. Feeling giddy, Boa waited for him to turn around and look at her. Once she caught his eye, she half screamed, half laughed and began running away from him.

For an exciting moment she thought he might be chasing her, but he wasn't, and slowly she began to allow herself a laugh and slowed to a walk. She had no idea why she had felt such an urge to do something so childish, but nothing would ever make her forget that playful glint in his eye as he had looked her, ready to throw handfuls of mud in her face, totally forgetting who they were and who they were meant to behave.

_**A/N**: Yes! The depressing moments are over; Boa and Carrion are friends again! … Butof course that won't last, but enjoy it whilst it does!_

_Please review and tell me what you're thinking!_


	6. Things are going right? Wrong

Chapter Six

**Things are going right? Wrong. **

All was right with the world. Things couldn't get any better. The weather was warm, the trees had new leaves, and finally Boa didn't have sneak about the palace. Whenever she saw Carrion around, she would just wave enthusiastically at him and carry on with whatever it was she was doing. Whenever she saw Finnegan she would do the same. Yes, for Boa, everything was perfect.

It was her parents who noted this change in behaviour more than most, and their worries about her lifted immediately. It _had_ been a phase after all. And with the King and Queen smiling also, nothing bothered the royal family for a week.

* * *

Boa sat on the grass next to the pond, one hand holding her hair up, the other rummaging around in her pocket for a hair band. She didn't notice the person walking towards her over the lawn.

"Boa?"

Boa looked around, not knowing who to expect standing there for the speaker had been a woman. She didn't have many female friends, at least none of which came to visit her spontaneously. Even looking at the woman gave no clues as to who she was, for Boa had never seen her in her life. She felt slightly annoyed that someone she didn't even know had addressed her with her first name; her defences went up immediately.

"Yes?" she asked looking up at the stranger without a smile.

"Don't you remember me?" the woman asked smiling a sickly fake smile.

Boa frowned. No, she didn't remember this woman, and was feeling slightly annoyed at being interrupted for it.

"No, sorry," she answered, the annoyed feeling wasn't going away, and she wasn't feeling sorry at all.

The woman shrugged as if it didn't matter and held out a letter for Boa to take.

"I am here to summon you to a meeting, it is in you best interest not to refuse to come, it would send the wrong message..."

Boa snatched the letter out her hand and looked at the name on the envelope. It was addressed to her all right.

"Does my father know you are here?" Boa asked her eyes narrowing. The woman looked indifferent to her words.

"Of course," she said stiffly. "Would I be allowed near you if I didn't have permission? Besides Lord Carrion is watching me."

Boa sat bolt upright and looked over at the palace, sure enough Christopher Carrion was stood outside of the door that led to the garden, staring menacingly at the woman in front of her. Well, she thought, I suppose he does have some uses after all.

"And what kind of meeting is this?"

"It's a meeting about you, we're not happy with the way you have been conducting the distribution of money in your charity. Some of it has gone missing, and is not in our eyes being well spent."

Boa gaped at her.

"Who is this _we_? And why has nothing been said before?" Boa shouted standing up to look the woman in the eye, she was smaller than Boa had imagined. "If money has been going missing it's not on my end, I can assure you of that!"

The woman shrugged.

"Well, we'll see," she said uncaring, she didn't seem at all worried about Boa's status, and so Boa assumed she must carry a high position of power in wherever it was that she came from.

Boa stuffed the letter in her pocket and began walking away from her, she didn't want to spend another minute being looked down on by this woman, whoever she was. She wouldn't give her the satisfaction of begging to know her name either, she could find out in less embarrassing ways anyway. Her cheeks burning, because she knew what Carrion would say about her running away and allowing herself to be spoken to so, Boa headed towards him.

"I hope you didn't overhear that," she said as soon as she was beside him.

"I didn't have to," he replied still watching the offending woman walk away. "She came to see me earlier. Charming isn't she?"

Boa frowned at him.

"I thought her manners would be right up your street," she said seriously, "everyone who works for you is _rude_."

"Not to me," he replied as if there was no other answer. Boa shrugged, they wouldn't dare she supposed.

"So, did she give you a letter too?" she asked hopefully. If Carrion had one, then she wouldn't have to go to this meeting on her own.

"She tried, but I set fire to it whilst she was still holding it," he said noting the look of horror that passed over Boa's face. "Then I threw her out of the window."

This time Boa laughed.

"You're a liar, I bet you just took it and left it somewhere, like the bin…" Boa said watching his posture stiffen.

"Have you been spying on me? No you can't have been, because I actually ripped it in half before I put it in the bin."

Boa rolled her eyes, and dug out the letter.

"Well what should we do about this one?" she asked holding it up in front of his face.

"Alright I can see it!" he snapped. Boa lowered it at once. "You won't be able to get rid of it before you read it, too afraid you'll miss something," he said knowingly.

Boa scowled and looked at the letter.

"I can. Watch," and with that she crossed back over to the pond and dropped the letter in. She watched it sink and waited for Carrion to catch her up. "Oh," she said as soon as it disappeared from the surface. "I shouldn't have done that, what if it was important?"

Carrion bit back a smile.

"Oh yes, very important, it probably contained directions and instructions as to where this meeting is being held. Shame, now you can't go, and it was all about you after all. Whatever will you do now?" he said with mocking surprise.

Boa looked up at him angrily.

"That was your fault, I'm going to be in trouble for this now. Why did you dare me? You knew that it was important after all! I bet you never ripped yours up, I bet you're going!" Boa accused.

Carrion didn't even attempt to look sorry for his trickery.

"Of course I'm going! You really think I wouldn't? Its all about you after all, should be amusing, anyway, your little charity has been itching to berate me for the 'unsatisfactory' running of _my_ own island, and it doesn't help that the money you sent recently has gone missing now. So thank you for that, I thought I made it clear that Midnight didn't require your help! You've made trouble for me, consider this payback."

Boa looked as though she might explode with her anger.

"I could kill you!" she shouted drawing the attention of some other people who were walking in the garden.

Boa hit him hard in the chest, but before she could get away he had hold of her upper arm. Boa gasped in pain, she thought he'd broken her arm. But Carrion hadn't finished, he twisted her arm so that it was around her back and Boa was screaming in pain.

"Kill me? I could kill you! I asked you not interfere, but like all women you think you know best. Now I have an army of people looking into every piece of paperwork I have, wanting to know where this money has gone," he shouted over her screams of 'get off, let go!'.

The other people in the garden stood stock still, muttering to each other that it was indeed shocking what they were seeing.

"I didn't send any money!" Boa screamed at him. "Let me go!"

Carrion let go so roughly that Boa fell on the floor fidgeting with her sore arm. She wondered where all her guards were, but with a sickening feeling she remembered that Midnight guards were now watching her, and they weren't about to attack their employer.

"Well who did?" Carrion asked calm again after his sudden outburst of rage.

Boa blinked away her tears.

"I don't know, but I'm going to find out."

"Well that doesn't help me," Carrion said staring at the people watching him and sent them walking away quickly.

"Like I care now you broke my arm!" Boa said knowing full well it wasn't really broken; it had just felt that way when he was holding it. Carrion didn't look bothered by the fact her arm could indeed be broken, but just hauled her up onto her feet.

Boa knew one thing; she wouldn't be hitting him again in a hurry. Rubbing her arm, she watched Carrion take out a letter; identical to the one she had thrown in the pond.

"Alright, I'm sorry."

Boa blinked.

"I'm sorry?" had she just heard him right? Had he just apologised?

"Yes, that's what I just said."

Boa looked at him confused for a few moments, trying to understand what he meant by that. She decided not to tell him that she had meant 'pardon' because it would only get more complicated. Instead she just said: "Ok."

Actually she was feeling totally confused. Someone had given an order in her place to send the money to Midnight, and she was angry. She didn't now how she was going to find out _whom_ either, at least not alone anyway.

**Authors Note**: And where oh where is Finnegan? Beautiful Finngean! I hear you all scream. … Or at least you all scream, but not because you love him. I haven't forgotten him, it's just time for some frustrating jealousy, mhahaha! …and of course, like always Boa is totally oblivious. Duh.

To everyone who is reading, many many hugs!

_Delavega_: holds wooden spoon Stan didn't get me today!


	7. To Midnight

**Chapter Seven**

**To Midnight**

Boa sat at the dinner table with a blurry look in her eyes, she was so tired. After the morning's drama she had gone through every piece of paper that had anything to do with her charity. She tried to think back to the day they had argued and wondered who it was who had decided to go against her, after her adamant decision not to interfere with Midnight.

Maybe now the people who had taken it upon themselves to make the decision were feeling stupid? After all she had warned that Midnight needed none of their help, wasn't this now proof? She couldn't imagine that anyone would take the money for their own ends; they were supposed to be helping people, not lining their own pockets. Boa thought her faith in individuals may well suffer if it was found to be true. She liked to think the person had acted on impulse, truly believing that Midnight was in need. Not out of greed.

But no one had come forward to speak to her, and so she was beginning to think the worst. The money had been embezzled somewhere, and all fingers were now pointing at her and Carrion. She felt sorry for Carrion, it was easy to blame him for this, more so than her. But she wasn't prepared to let them get away with it. It wasn't her fault, and it had nothing to do with Christopher.

She couldn't taste what she was eating, and she couldn't hear what was being said to her. Her mind was racing over possibilities of what may have happened. She didn't even notice when Filth the monkey arrived in the dining room with an over the top clumsy flourish.

He bowed to the King and Queen and waved to everyone else sitting further down the great dining tables. He then produced two brightly coloured balls and began balancing them on his nose. The King roared with laughter that made Boa jump, and she looked around to see if anyone had noticed. No one was looking at her, except one person, a lone figure standing in the doorway.

Boa gasped and jumped up. No one paid her any attention, all eyes were on Filth. Hurrying down the side of the room, Boa grabbed the man's arm and dragged him away from the diners.

"Quiffin! What are you doing here? I thought you weren't coming back for months!" Boa said excited.

Her brother stroked the styled beard on his chin with a wide smile.

"I took a detour, besides, I heard you were in trouble little sister, although I doubt you have told them," he said jerking his thumb in the direction of the King and Queen.

Boa blushed.

"I can handle it. Besides, how'd you find out?" she asked leading him away and into towards the gardens.

"I have my ways…" he replied secretly.

Boa raised an eyebrow.

"Oh alright," he said relenting. "I was speaking to Lord Carrion, surprising how much we have in common actually…too much for comfort anyway."

Boa looked at the floor. Why had he gone to see Carrion before coming to see her? But she didn't want to start an argument, he had only just returned. Instead she just smiled and grabbed hold of his arm as if she feared he wasn't real.

"How is the crusade going? I haven't heard very much, have you been writing to father? Have you got to Midnight yet? What is it really like?" Boa asked with bright eager eyes.

Quiffin laughed, a perfect copy of the joyous laughter of his father. Boa waited impatiently for him to answer her.

"No, I have not managed to get to Midnight yet, quite honestly I have been avoiding it. Whenever I have inquired for Lord Carrion's permission he has always been away from his hour and here. So my sister, I decided I must return. I can't say I am looking forward to going there, especially if it's Lord cannot stand the place either."

"Shh," Boa hushed him. "Don't say that, that's not why he's here. He's very, very proud of Gorgossium."

"Oh I know," was all Quiffin said to that. He looked at Boa with a wary eye.

"Besides, everyone will point fingers now at that place. No you have to carry on like normal Quiffin, you have to visit, then all the talk will stop," Boa said nodding at her own idea.

"Carry on? Now, why ever would I do that; when it is clear that Midnight is a place of low morals, where charitable money is stolen?"

Boa looked at him aghast.

"But," was all she could manage to say.

"But what?"

"It's not his fault, and you are not doing a very good job as a supportive brother if you refuse to help me," Boa said folding her arms across her chest for comfort.

"Listen, I might respect Carrion for the power he has at his fingertips, but that does not mean I would not rejoice to see him fail, and the sooner the better. I don't like him being anywhere near you, and the fact that he has designs upon you disturbs me greatly. You might want to walk around with your eyes shut, but believe me, he is dangerous, he is not your friend, and he will hurt you given the chance."

"Christopher would never…"

"Boa!" Quiffin shouted, and then stopped himself from continuing in such a tone. He added more quietly; "I wish you would wake up to this. It isn't a game Boa, and the more you treat it like one the harder it's going to be for you to end it."

Boa's mouth fell open again.

"It's not a game!" she said annoyed. "I am just doing my job, and whatever these 'designs' are I can handle it. I've already spoken to him about it, we're fine, and it's Finnegan that my attentions are for, not Carrion," Boa assured him.

Quiffin shook his head and looked away from her. What could he do? Lord Carrion was the most powerful man in the Abarat, besides his father and a few others, but on one would dare to stand up to him. The only person he had ever seen put him in his place was him little sister, and he knew why he listened to her.

He could not warn Carrion off, he would end up being disposed of in a highly suspicious, but untraceable way, and that wasn't going to help Boa much.

Boa looked as though she was thinking hard, but Quiffin didn't want to guess what about. She seemed to be doing one stupid thing after another these days, but sending money to Midnight was undoubtedly the worst.

"Fine, well if you won't go to Midnight, then I will. I'm going to see it with my own eyes. I'm fed up of people talking about it as if it isn't real, as if it's one big nightmare. I'm going to prove to the Abarat that it is just the same as everywhere else!" Boa decided looking at Quiffin as if she would murder him if he dare defy her.

He bowed his head.

"Fine," he replied. "But you must do this properly, and for goodness sake explain to Finnegan. You must not be seen alone with Carrion during any part of the visit if you want to escape rumours, take your handmaidens and keep them with you at all times."

There was not point trying to dissuade her. Their father, for some unknown reason, trusted Carrion and would no doubt agree to this visit. All he could do was offer her some advice.

Boa smiled.

"I'm going to right this wrong I made," she said happily. "This will do so much more good than money. And if I ever find that person that stole it, well… I will tell them that they didn't succeed in destroying me."

Quiffin frowned.

"What do you mean if? You mean you don't know who did it? You really believe that it wasn't Lord Carrion?"

"I didn't send that money," Boa told him. "It was an inside job, someone working for me did, one of my advisers. They're trying to destroy either me of Lord Carrion, and I won't have it. Now you understand why I have to go? It's my reputation as well as his that is suffering."

Boa shrugged, she couldn't make him understand, but someone who would was only a short walk away. Smiling at her brother one final time, Boa went in search of Carrion. She would tell him her plan, and then he would ask her father for permission. He was more likely to be granted it than if she asked for herself, and then she would worry about Finnegan later.

She hoped that he would understand, that this was duty and not love, and that as a Princess she was forced forever to make sacrifices to keep her image pure, and as a guide to all others.

Author's note: I just have to add here that, "Duh! Boa's such an idiot!" Now that's out of the way, thank you for all the reviews!


	8. Forbidden Books

**Chapter Eight**

**Forbidden Books**

"Christopher?" Boa called into the empty vastness of the library.

Nobody answered her, Carrion was not in his usual spot at the desk, and the room looked decidedly empty without him.

"Hello?" Boa tried again. "Is anyone here?"

Again nothing. But the library had to be where Carrion was, so Boa ventured deeper into it's depths, passing row upon row of books as she travelled to the other side of the large room to where there stood a door. She had never been through this door, for she had never really needed to use the library before. If she wanted a book, she would send someone to fetch it for her, it was only when she was looking for Carrion that she even came near the place.

The door lead down some stairs, and into a storage room filled with redundant books; ones that were of no use to anyone anymore, or had been rendered useless because of new editions of their print. Mostly everything in the dark room was covered in a thin layer of dust, not enough to suppose it was never cleaned, but enough to suggest it hadn't been recently.

There was a light burning down one of the aisles, and Boa craned her neck to look. She could detect no movement, and so walked towards the lamp, trying to make her footsteps loud so that whoever was there wouldn't think she was creeping.

As Boa got closer, she could see the edge of someone's cloak sticking out from around the corner. She knew instantly whom it belonged to, and so burst around the corner in a state of manic smiles, intent to give the owner a scare. Only, there was no one to meet her on the other side. The cloak had been draped over a box, and the lamp abandoned.

Boa scowled. What kind of game was he playing now? And where was she anyhow? Boa was about to turn back around and leave, when she caught sight of something. She picked up the lamp.

A selection of books had been disturbed, one lay on the floor, looking as if it had fallen off the stack after the reader's hasty departure. She bent down to retrieve it. She could read none of the words for they were in a language she couldn't understand, but she could understand the pictures. This was a book of high magic.

"What are you doing here? You shouldn't be in here! This is no place for you!" said a disappointed and angry voice from behind her.

Boa let the book fall to the floor in her surprise.

"I was looking for…"

She was about to say she was looking for Prince Carrion, but the little old man wouldn't let her finish. He looked very agitated, and his eye twitched as he looked at her.

"No, nothing down here for a girl like you, no nothing at all…" he said, and then his lungs gave up a dry cough. He sounded as dusty as the books looked. "Bad, bad books these are, terrible books. No, you must not look at these!"

Boa looked at the book she had dropped. How could a book with such a pretty cover be considered a bad book?

"If they are so terrible why do we keep them here in the palace?"

The old man looked at her as if she was crazy for asking such a question, although it seemed a pretty logical question to Boa.

"To stop them getting into the wrong hands of course!" he shrieked.

Boa was rather concerned about the sanity of this man, it was clear he had been locked up with grimy old books for too long a time. Boa looked around the room.

"Have you seen Lord Carrion down here?"

The little man went pale faced, and then a little annoyed.

"The king forbids him access down here, for good reason too I don't doubt! I always keep the door locked," he told her with a satisfied puffed up chest.

Boa nodded. But he has gotten down here, even if the door was locked, she thought, but said nothing.

"I got in here," Boa said quietly.

"Ay, but you have a key miss! I heard you come in ten minutes ago. I was stacking boxes, I could not attend you sooner than now."

Boa hadn't been there ten minutes ago, but she knew who had. She also didn't have a key, but she could guess who did.

"Yes," she said. "I have a key."

The man nodded.

"So, what were you looking for?" he asked, his voice changing to helpfulness. It sounded strange after he had been so angry moments before.

"Well… er, I'm not really sure. I guess I just wanted to have a look; curiosity was all it was. I think I'll go back upstairs now…" Boa said picking up the cloak and the lamp. She put the cloak around her shoulders pretending it was hers.

The cloak was too long and swamped her, and she blushed as she struggled to do up the button. Surely the man would realise it wasn't really hers? For who is unable to do up their own cloak? But he just continued to stare, and Boa hurried out as fast as she could.

Boa almost tripped as she walked back into the seemingly bright light of the library main. Sure enough Carrion was now sitting at his usual desk, scribbling in his book like he always was. For the first time Boa wondered what he was writing.

And what had he found in the basement of the library?

"Christopher?" she asked warily. She wasn't even sure if he knew she was there behind him.

"Boa," he said calmly as he turned around to look at her. "I did not expect to see you… in my cloak…"

Boa blushed scarlet; she had forgotten she was wearing his cloak. She gave a shy smile.

"Yes, I'm sure you didn't expect to see me," she said looking down at the cloak and the lamp, she didn't need to say anymore, Carrion knew already that he had been caught. "I feel like it's dress-up day or something…"

"It's been many years since dress-up day," Carrion said sorrowfully. Boa looked at him trying to guess his thoughts, she couldn't.

"Yes, well you went as yourself, so that didn't count, and it was my birthday, you were supposed to make an effort!" Boa said undoing the button and pulling the cloak from her shoulders. "Dressing up as the son of the King of Midnight doesn't actually count if you happen to be him!"

Carrion gave her a small smile as if she had helped him remember something pleasant in his life.

"Anyway," Boa said shaking her head. "I've come for a favour, and if you don't want me telling father about your little rummage in the forbidden tombs of the 'bad books', I suggest you grant me it."

"I'm listening."

Boa bit her lip before starting. His eyes were staring intently on her face, as she felt he really was listening. Not just saying he was like everyone else did, it was a strange feeling. It made her more confident, as if what she had to say was of consequence.

"My brother has informed me he intends to end his crusade before visiting Midnight. This is at the worst possible time for me, as you know. This missing money had caused great disturbance, and his turning his back on your island confirms beliefs that it is indeed a terrible place," Boa said stopping to collect her thoughts. "What I propose is this… I will take his place. I want you to take me to Midnight, as soon as you can."

"May I ask how this is going to help you? I thought you would wish to distance yourself from me," Carrion said suspiciously.

"If I had something to hide I might just as well do that! But they won't drive me underground," Boa said taking a determined step forward and putting her hands on his desk.

She was now stood at his side looking down on his book. She couldn't read his writing without getting closer, and so she gave up.

"So it's a stand of unity then?" Carrion said sounding slightly disgusted.

"No, not exactly. You told me once that midnight needed no money, that all it needed was light. Well I believed you, and I told them that no money should be sent your way. I want to show the world that you were right, that you told me the truth, that I was right to want the money sent somewhere else… once they see the real Midnight they will see how I couldn't have sent the money… because it wasn't needed!"

Carrion frowned slightly, he understood what she was trying to prove to everyone, but he didn't know who was going to listen. If her own brother had let her down, did that she mean she was depending on him now?

"And what if I lied to you, what if you find Midnight in pieces? What then? Would you still try and save it from the gutters of the Abarat, or would you run home to Daddy?"

"Then you would have destroyed me Christopher, for I could have ensured that money was safe. As it is, it was stolen on its way to Midnight," Boa said honestly.

There was no point in lying, but nevertheless she looked at him hopefully.

"Midnight does not welcome state visits, you know this. I will not take a entourage of millions…" he said before falling silent. "I still don't see how this is supposed to benefit me, I've been accused of much worse before and you never tried to save me then."

Boa remembered her brother's words to her, that she must do this properly, and not be seen anywhere with Carrion alone. So she planned to take her most favoured handmaid with her, Carrion couldn't object to that. As for the rest, that was true, she had never helped him before; she was selfish, as she knew it.

"I am sorry about the past, but I thought we had put all of that behind us?"

"Oh, yes, behind us…" Carrion repeated as if it was the stupidest thing he had ever heard. "So, you've come to save me have you?"

"Yes, alright! Is that what you want to hear?" Boa snapped annoyed.

"No, that's not what I want to hear. I want you to tell me the truth, you are dong this for yourself only, this will not help me at all," Carrion said watching tears well up in Boa's eyes.

"No, my visit will bring attention to…"

"Ah, now we have it! The truth at last! You presume in your conceited confidence of you own great brilliant power, that should you approve Midnight as a civilised place, you could save it from the depths of hell?"

Boa's eyes widened.

"I just want to stop the rumours! I am fed up of hearing stories, I want to see it for myself, and if I can make any difference by awakening the rest of the Abarat to your hour than I mean to do it. Yes, I am trying to save myself, but I do not try to take and not give back!"

Carrion laughed, and slammed his book shut.

"Fine, by all means join me on my ship and sail to Midnight, but I promise you no holiday, if this is business then I will treat you like any other visiting ambassador."

"Fine," Boa said folding her arms over her chest.

They remained in silence for some long minutes, before Boa realised she wasn't really angry after all, she was becoming used to the fact that discussions with Carrion usually always ended as fights, and she was learning to bounce back from them as if nothing had happened.

"Will your grandmother approve? She will not try to return me?" Boa asked. This was the only thought casting a dark cloud over her bright idea. That and the knowledge that she would have to deal with Christopher's bad moods more often than she was used to.

Carrion raised an amused eyebrow. His grandmother could take a running jump for all he cared.

"Approve? I think she'd be slightly more impressed if you staged a war on us, and your arrival was an invasion… but she will not interfere with us."

The argument was forgotten. Carrion clearly snapped between moods even faster than Boa did.

Boa smiled, Mater Motley was a strange person, and wasn't embarrassed to admit she was afraid of her, but she trusted Carrion to keep her safe from whatever lived on Midnight besides him.

"Well… in that case, you better ask my father for me. He won't say no to you," Boa said cheekily, knowing she was pushing her luck. She would be pushing it with anyone now, but with Carrion she was dancing on a knife-edge.

He remained thankfully silent.

"And what about Finnegan? Do I get to tell him too?" he asked making Boa's blood run cold.

She heard her brother in her head again: '_and for goodness sake explain to Finnegan'_

She felt angry at Carrion for baiting her, she knew what he was doing, but she wouldn't let him win. The rules of this trip were going to be made clear right now, and Boa took a deep breath before looking him in the eye.

"Finnegan will understand. I have to save my reputation, I can afford no more scandals, and there will be no more. I will have my handmaid with me at all times. If you don't agree with this then I will have to insist my brother accompany me, and I'm sure Finnegan will not be adverse either!"

Carrion stood up so fast it made Boa jump.

"We will leave tomorrow, now go, I'm busy."

Boa felt guilty for shouting again, but also felt better for saying it. He could be under no delusions now, she felt bad for using him in this, which was more about her reputation than his, that was true, but she could think of no other way to save herself.

Realising she had just gotten her own way, and had come out the victor for first time from a spat between them, Boa clapped her hands and laughed.

"Ha! Thank you!" she said happily. "And when that meeting is called, I will have all the proof I need!"

**Authors Note:** Oh, it's all happy again! Lets see how long it last this time. Sorry for the long delay in updating this fic, but I mislaid my notebook and couldn't find it for aaaages. Thank you for the reviews!


	9. Midnight Welcomes a Princess

**Won't you come out and play with me?**

**Chapter Nine **

Midnight Welcomes a Princess 

The saltwater spray of the sea hit Boa's face, as she leaned out as far as she could over the edge of the Wormwood. Her handmaiden, Aelda stood far away from the side, her arms and upper body wrapped up in a black drape. Her presence was almost eclipsed by the brightness of Boa's enthusiasm, but she was like a black spot to Carrion, blocking out his sun.

He knew the only person standing in the way of him and his princess being alone, was this young woman, with straw coloured hair and a timid looking face; and he knew there was also no way he could get rid of her. He had agreed to the terms after all.

Boa's head turned in his direction, and whether the smile on her face was for him or the thrill of the sea, he couldn't tell; all he knew was that he was lost in her face, and had the ship been sinking around him he would not have cared.

Boa watched the sky darken with a fascination. Finally she was going to see this mysterious place that she had heard stories about all her life. There were two sides to Midnight, the one that Carrion told her, and the one that was believed by most. The idea that she was travelling towards some kind of danger made her excited, and full of manic laughter.

She was frightened, but she was safe, and it was the most fun feeling she could imagine. Slowly, very slowly stars began appearing in the sky. The waves turned darker, and the teeth in the mouths of the fishes below got sharper. She stepped back from the water, it wasn't so inviting anymore.

"Miss, please, come and put on a cloak, I'm afraid you'll freeze. There is no light here remember," Aelda said beckoning Boa away from the edge.

She wished the princess would come off the deck and go back down below. It was too cold up here for her, and she was cold herself. But Boa couldn't feel the wind; her blood was warm with exhilaration, for in the distance she had spotted the first beams of light.

"Oh!" she shouted and pointed. "I see it, I see it!"

Boa was right, out of the pitch-blackness of the horizon had appeared a glow of lights, clustered together in what looked like a small dome. It grew in brightness as they approached, and with it the lights separated into colours.

Boa's eyes widened as the lights lit up her face, and the cheers, shouts and calls of the people seeing the ship approach filled her ears. She had arrived, it was time to become a princess once again and step out into the crowd. But her heart hammered, she was nervous and when she looked around for Carrion he had disappeared from view.

The ship was docked, and she looked up at the cast iron arch that span over the city entrance, reading: Gorgossium.

Slowly people began to point towards her, their excited faces becoming even more animated. She heard people asking each other who she was, pointing at her, all the while the noise was becoming louder and louder. Laughter, calls to friends, screams of joy.

The prince has brought a lady to visit us, a beautiful lady, a lady dressed like a princess.

Boa smiled nervously, and gave a shy wave to a gathering of wide-eyed children stood on top of crates to best see her. They giggled together and returned her wave, and somebody finally quieted the crowd with a trumpet blast.

All of a sudden, Christopher Carrion had her hand and was walking her towards the boat's exit. She allowed him to lead her in a daze, until she saw the fancy plank she had to walk down, and saw the people waiting at the other end.

They looked greedy, ready to rip her to bits in order to know who she was.

"No, no I can't," she declared pulling at Carrion to let her go.

"Don't worry, they won't harm you. They just want your picture," he told her not looking as if he understood her sudden fear.

But still Boa's heels dug in the wood of the ship, and Carrion was forced to almost pull her along.

"Don't show me up," he snapped at her suddenly, making Boa flinch. "I brought you hear like you asked me to, now you will not disappoint my people by refusing to greet them with me, and you will not disappoint me by entering my island in disgrace."

This shot through Boa like a knife, and she sucked in her breath and took a big step towards the plank. As soon as she had a foot on it, there came the rain of questions.

"My Lord, I'm from Midnight Papers, who is this beautiful woman?"

"Miss, Miss, give us a smile!"

"Come on sweetie!"

Boa tried to smile, she really did, but halfway down all she could do was cling to Carrion as he was met by two men who looked like they would flatten the whole crowd for him should Carrion click his fingers.

"The state of the island gentlemen?" he asked, as he waved at some people screaming his name, and pulled Boa closer to him as photographers snapped them over and over again.

"No worse than when you left My Lord, the hospital has been completed, it just awaits your approval to be opened, and the new housing is coming along ahead of schedule."

"Excellent. Where is the carriage? I have had enough of this," he said as he was handed a set of papers of some kind.

Boa tried to see what he was reading, but she was still being photographed. Finally the two men told the photographers to get out the way, and they ploughed a path through them all in which Carrion followed, and Boa did her best to keep up without being jostled too much.

"You didn't announce me!" she said as soon as they were safe in the carriage and the door was shut.

"I didn't need to, It'll be all over the papers tomorrow," he replied still reading.

Boa scowled and snatched the paper away from him. Her handmaid put a protective hand on Boa's arm as one of the men sat either side of Carrion made a threatening twitch in Boa's direction.

"You said I would be safe!"

"And you are, may I have my papers back?"

"I was almost crushed back there!" Boa said angrily, the stress of the past ten minutes coming back upon her.

Carrion was indifferent.

"Guard, I told you that all visitors should be protected, especially royalty," he said not looking at anyone but Boa.

"She was My Lord," the man insisted.

"There you are Boa, you were," Carrion told her, giving her a smile that communicated that he found her flustered state amusing.

Boa shuddered. There was something about his face when he smiled that wasn't normal, he wasn't smiling for the same reasons anyone else did, to make you feel better, or to include you. His smiles were for himself only.

Boa looked down at the papers in her hands.

"What are all these names for?" she asked.

Carrion Smiled again.

"Men and woman awaiting execution."

Boa's faced paled and she dropped the papers back on her lap.

"And the crimes?" she forced herself to ask.

"Treason."

There was silence for the remainder of the journey, but Carrion's eyes never left her face. And whilst Boa tried to look out of the window, she felt her face flush darker and darker with every passing second. She hated him, hated him, yet she couldn't bring her heart to do the same thing.

The carriage stopped and the two men each left via different doors, one on either of the carriage, and Carrion followed out of the door Boa assumed she was supposed to exit from too. As soon as she was out the shear size of the towers before her struck her dumb.

"Miss, I am instructed to escort all visitors to their quarters. Where you end up after that is not my concern," one of Carrion's guards said.

Boa looked him over scathingly. She disliked him; he had been the one that had made the threatening move towards her in the carriage.

"And you would be…?" she said haughtily.

"Lieutenant Burn, Miss, head of security on the island," he replied in a militant fashion.

Boa bit her lip and nodded. She took hold of her maid's hand, and nodded to the man to lead the way. Carrion had abandoned her, and she was feeling too tired to argue.

Lieutenant Burn led the way, and looked back at her now and then. He felt sorry for the girl. She had looked like a fighter until Lord Carrion had lied to her and caused tears for form in the backs of her eyes. He felt he had to say something.

"Miss, what was said on the way here, it wasn't true," Burn said knowing he could get into trouble for speaking to her out of turn. "The names were not people awaiting death, they are people claiming to have medical knowledge… they will be working in the new hospital. I mean, the only hospital…there has never been one before, so the Prince has had to recruit from scratch."

There was silence again.

"Oh," Boa said simply. She looked to Aelda to see what she made of it, but she was straight faced and said nothing.

"Well, here we are," he said stopping outside a door but not going in. "If you need anything, pull on the red cord."

Boa thanked him and stepped into the room. It was large, comfortable and boring. Boa shrugged and sat down on the bed. So she was here, what now? Surely Carrion wasn't going to ignore her forever? True she felt silly for her behaviour earlier, she should have been expecting that, what did she think would happen, that they would sneak round the back?

But surely he would ask for her soon? Surely?

**Author's note**: If you are wondering what happened between Boa and Finnegan, you'll have to wait a bit longer I'm afraid. But again thank you for all the reviews!


	10. Letters and Liars

**Won't you come out and play with me?**

**Author's Note: **I planned out every single chapter of this story last night, and ended up with 27 of them. So it's fair to say this story has a long way to go yet.

**Answer to why Carrion lied about the execution list:** He's EVIL! But I love him anyway… And don't worry, Motley will make an appearance But in the meantime, lets just enjoy the world Motley free…

**Chapter Ten: **Letters and liars

The newspaper did not even need to be picked up to be read, the picture on the front-page spoke for it. Three pairs of eyes stared at it in shock; one pair did not seem interested at all.

Prince Quiffin glanced at the paper, and then returned to idly spreading jam on his bread. It was only when he looked at his shell-shocked parents, and the silence began dragging, that he realised something was wrong. He waited for someone to speak, and as he did so, took a bite of his bread.

"What is this?" King Klaus managed eventually, in a very strangled sounding voice. "Our daughter has gone to Midnight?"

Finnegan snatched the paper out of the king's hands, his face was aghast in horror. As clear at the water in the glasses on the table, Boa was pictured standing next to Lord Carrion, smiling and waving as if she wanted nothing more in the world than to be standing at his side.

"No," Finnegan muttered to himself.

"Yeah, so what?" Quiffin replied to the king, in an indifferent sort of way. "You must have known she was going?"

He could not share in the company's surprise, as he had been the one his sister had formulated her plans with. The queen let out a loud sob.

"Oh my baby, my dear, dear Boa! Gone off to Midnight! That ghastly horrible place! What are we all to do?" she cried. She was patted on the arm gently by her husband, however this did little to soothe her.

"There, there dear, she is safe with Lord Carrion, there is no need to be alarmed, and Midnight is not so far away you know. We all knew she wanted to visit…we just weren't prepared to see her go," he said reasonably, but his face was full of sadness. "I only wish she had asked my permission…I am so disappointed in her."

Finnegan seemed to snap out of his trance as the king stopped speaking, and one word of the speech was upon his own lips.

"Safe?" he burst, unable to control his anger. "Safe? With that monster? Safe you say?"

Quiffin laughed suddenly, but he was stared into silence. He personally couldn't see what the problem was.

"But you knew she was going surely?" he asked Finnegan in a joking manner, the reply shocked him.

"No, I did not! Had I known I would have dissuaded her from it!"

Quiffin was silent now.

The king put an arm around Finnegan's shoulder in a fatherly way.

"Listen Finnegan lad, I know you care for my daughter very much," he said quietly. Finnegan blushed red. "But I trust Lord Carrion, and I tell you there is nothing to fear."

"I believe you will live to regret that," Finnegan said sadly.

The king shook his head in a tired way, and for the first time in years looked very, very old.

"I will write to her, and send the letter straight away. She will explain herself to me, but in the meantime, let's all just try and carry on as normal," he declared.

There was a resigned silence within the group, as if the King's word was final. But Quiffin quickly destroyed it.

"Sir, I fear that may not work. Boa confided in me her reasons for going, and I must not repeat them if she has decided not to tell you. All I may say is that she has gotten herself into trouble, but is not in any danger, I can be sure of that."

The king looked at him angrily for a moment, but quickly sighed and shrugged his shoulders.

"All I can do is try. I made her an ambassador, I know that means she is unable to tell me everything…I am just so disappointed."

Nobody stopped him when he stood, took the paper and walked out of the room. He was too upset to be spoken to anymore. But Finnegan had not finished with _his_ anger yet.

"Well I still refuse to believe she went willingly. Why would she not tell me?" he demanded.

Quiffin shrugged. He couldn't answer, he truly did not know. He had gone so far as to beg his sister to tell Finnegan, why she had not he couldn't understand.

"Quiffin you must go to Midnight. I don't care what your father says, I don't like Carrion. You must go and bring her back," the queen ordered. "Finnegan is right, she is not safe with him."

"Ho, ho!" Quiffin laughed. "Go to Midnight? Why, I have only just arrived here!"

"I will go!" Finnegan said quickly.

The queen looked at him as if seeing him in a new light. She had never really thought much of him, now she was beginning to change her mind. Quiffin just looked at him as if he was nuts.

"She wont thank you for it," he warned.

"She will in the long run," Finnegan replied confidently. "Carrion cannot be responsible, not where Boa's concerned. His passion's run too deep."

Quiffin laughed again.

"Passions? Ha! Carrion will have Boa for a bride, not a lover. You do not need to fear for her honour with him!"

The queen gasped in horror.

"Your travels have made you vulgar Quiffin! I never wish to hear you speak of your sister, or any woman like that again! She does not know the world like you do, and I worry for her. Finnegan, I thank you for caring about the safety of my daughter."

* * *

Boa received three letters the evening following the picture in the paper. She recognised all three handwritings, and was at a loss to know which one to open first. She picked up her brother's; at least he was always on her side, no matter what she did.

_Sister, _

_I am surprised at your behaviour. This is most unlike you. Even after I begged you to tell Finnegan of your trip, you have ignored me. I could have forgiven this had you informed mother and father. But to leave them in the dark like that was shameful. _

However try as I might I cannot stay angry with you, who else in the Abarat do I have to moan about things to? You looked lovely in those pictures, and your plan appears already to be working. Everyone is watching your every step Boa, so be careful. My advice again; keep your servants near at all times. One compromising picture could undo all your hard work.

_Quiffin_

Boa opened the next. It was from her father.

_Daughter,_

_The shock I had at finding my daughter stepping foot into Midnight almost put me in my grave. Why could you not have told me that you would be travelling? Were you afraid I might refuse you? You know full well that I support anything you wish to do Boa, and would not have said no. As it is, you have left me very disappointed in you, and reduced to requesting an explanation as soon as you feel you are able to give one._

Boa shook as she opened the last. She almost felt like crying.

_Boa, _

_I am coming to Midnight, by the time you read this I will be halfway there. We need to talk, and I must have answers._

Your Finnegan 

Boa started at the coldness of the letter, but could not blame him. She did not know why she had not told him, only that she was a coward and afraid of what he would say. Only now she wished she had, for she had made it worse. But there was something she was not prepared to take the blame for.

She crumpled the letters up in her fist and wiped her eyes. She was ready to scream in anger. How dare he!

"Liar!" she shouted into the silent room, filled with all Carrion's peers. "Liar, liar, lair!"

Carrion, composed and indifferent as ever, looked at her blankly. This only enraged her more, why could she never embarrass him?

"Please excuse me," he said to the room. No one was about to refuse.

"Yes, they will excuse you, because I will not wait! You are a liar Christopher Carrion!" she spat his name out as if it made her sick. "You said you had already asked my father for permission! You hadn't even seen him!"

Carrion shut the door behind him. It made little difference; the people in the room could still hear everything.

"I thought you wanted to leave immediately?"

"I did!"

"Well, he would have waylaid us, and what do you think you are doing coming barging in here when I am working? I could have you in the dungeons for that, princess or not!"

"Well go on then, you'd like that wouldn't you? And anyway, I'm not finished! Not only did you lie about that, you lied about that list too. Those people weren't going to die, they were applicants! You should apologise!"

"For what?"

"For everything! Everything you do, it's always so mean. You haven't even asked if I'm comfortable here, you just threw me in a room, and locked the door. You said you'd look after me, well you haven't!" Boa couldn't shout anymore, her throat was too sore.

Carrion looked momentarily ashamed.

"Why are you even surprised? I am cruel to you, you are spiteful to me. That's the way it has always been, why change now?"

"I am not spiteful," Boa replied like a child.

There was a trumpet blast in the distance, interrupting their conversation, or rather; argument. Boa huffed and walked to the window.

"What now?" she asked irritated.

Carrion joined her at the window.

"Someone important has arrived," he told her.

"They never sounded any trumpets when I arrived."

"That's because you're not important," Carrion replied so seriously that it took a while for Boa to realise what he'd said, and then another second to realise he was joking.

"Hey!"

"They only sound when I'm here to hear them, I wouldn't signal my own arrival would I?" he said in such a manner that made Boa feel stupid, as if she should have known that already and that it was perfectly obvious.

Boa blushed, as once again, she felt like the dumb one.

"A visitor will please my grandmother, like all old people she likes watching others from her window."

Boa shuddered, she had forgotten about the old crone. She had not seen her since she was a child, and she had been ancient then.

"That reminds me," Carrion continued again. "We have been invited to join her for dinner this evening."

Boa gripped the windowsill tighter.

"Do we have to?" she asked before she could stop herself. This apparently was the wrong thing to say.

"Yes we have to!" Carrion snapped. "Where are your manners?"

But even as his words made Boa flinch, she couldn't be scared, for in the corner of her eye she was sure she saw him smile at her as if they were in on the same joke.


	11. Lover's and Onlookers

**Won't you come out and play with me?**

****

**Lover's and Onlookers**

Boa climbed into the carriage next to Carrion, and travelled down to the docks again. She had come along simply because she was bored, and refused to be forgotten about when someone else, someone apparently 'important' arrived. Only she didn't realised Finnegan Hobb would be labelled as important under Midnight's standards.

Jumping out of the carriage before it had fully come to a stop, Boa raced over to where Finnegan was standing, along with someone else covered in a thick black cloak. When she was in speaking distance to them, the figure in black withdrew his hood, and Boa saw that it was her brother.

"Thought I'd come see you, and stop this young man from making a fool of himself," he said referring to Finnegan.

It was clear from the way they looked at one other that there was no love between them; in fact they looked at each other like sworn enemies.

"I wrote ahead," Finnegan said in his defence.

"Shouted ahead more like," Quiffin muttered. "Anyway, as much as I'd love to stay and chat, I didn't come to eavesdrop, I'm here to see _him_."

Boa followed his eye and saw that he was looking at Carrion.

"Why?" Boa asked puzzled. "I thought you didn't like him, no wait, you do like him… oh I get so confused."

"Public relations my dear sister. You were right, why stop my island tour without ever seeing Midnight, it wouldn't really be a real tour without it, would it?"

"I suppose not…" Boa concluded.

"And now you're here, he can hardly refuse me. Why, I might take you away from him and that would never do would it?" he gave a knowing smile.

Boa refused to answer. She noticed how her brother was dressed in his best, and realised he was a bit of a dandy with his clothes. Dressed in gold, red and royal blue. He looked tactile, and there was a stark contrast between his colours and Carrion's appearance of 'touch me and die'.

Quiffin gave Boa a friendly shove on the arm and walked around her and headed towards Carrion, who was looking at them like he wanted to kill them all. Boa let Quiffin go without protest, and tried to ignore the people trying to take her picture from a forced distance away.

"Finnegan, what are you doing here? I thought this would be the last place you would want to be!" Boa said, trying her best to be friendly and not appear annoyed at his unexpected appearance.

"It's the last place I want _you_ to be. Why didn't you tell me you were going away? If it had been anywhere else, or with anyone else I wouldn't have minded at all, but _him_! Why Boa?" Finnegan trying to keep her eyes on him, but they were darting everywhere else.

"I can't tell you why, but I need to be here. It was just convenient to leave instantly, and who better to see Midnight with than the Lord of the hour? I'm sorry I didn't tell you, but It wouldn't have changed anything. I have work to do, and I'm here to do it," Boa explained unable to look him directly in the eye, she couldn't help but feel guilty for something, yet she didn't understand what it was.

"I came here for one reason, and that was to take you home. Whatever you think you have to do here, I promise you, you don't need to do alone. If you just speak to your father you know he'll sort it all for you," Finnegan said not realising he was saying all the wrong things.

Boa gaped at him.

"Did my father ask you to come here?"

"Well…no…" Finnegan muttered.

"Then I won't return, and I don't want someone else to sort my problems for me, I can do it myself!" Boa insisted watching Finnegan's eyes darken in anger.

"Boa, just get on the boat. You are not safe with him, and you are not safe here!"

"No," Boa said shaking her head. "I wont do as you bid me, I can make my own decisions, and I'm staying here. You'll have to drag me onto that boat kicking and screaming because I won't be going!"

"Don't make me get angry with you!" Finnegan warned in a voice that made Boa want to jump backwards and away from him.

But she knew she couldn't draw attention to the fact that Finnegan was annoying her, because she didn't want Carrion interrupting them.

"Well go ahead, you can be as angry as you like, but I won't be leaving," Boa said stubbornly, folding her arms and making it as final as she could.

"Get on the boat now!"

"NO I WONT!" Boa shouted making everyone around them fall into silence instantly as they all tried to hear what was being said. "I won't leave, you can't make me. I'm staying here with Christopher and you can't stop me. I need his help, and I won't leave without it. You can shout at me all you like, and yes I know I'm taking a risk, but I'm not as stupid as you think I am!"

Finnegan didn't know about that, to him Boa was being the most stupidest of all people at that moment. What she was saying seemed irrational.

"You can't trust him Boa, you know what he did to you last time you were alone, he'll do it again however naïve you are! And as for your brother, well the less said about him the better. I don't trust you with him either! He's only here to suck up to Carrion and he's going to you use you to it. He's self-centred and won't look out for you in anything!" Finnegan said not realising everyone was listening to him.

Boa could feel Carrion's eyes in her back, and she knew he was only standing back from this because she seemed to be handling herself at the moment. If things got out of control he'd be at her side in a shot. She also knew she'd lost her chance to go home anyway, Carrion was aware of what was going on now, and she knew he wouldn't allow her to sneak off.

But never mind Carrion, her own anger was showing in her face.

"How dare you speak of my brother in such a way? At least he doesn't demand things from me, like dragging me away from places I want to be. Why can't you just get over yourself, yes I like you Finnegan, but you don't own me! I won't do as you tell me, running after you here, there, and wherever you say! Christopher never tells me what to do, he doesn't disgrace me by telling me I'm stupid and that my decisions are wrong!" Boa shouted much too loudly.

If the papers had been filled with pictures of her smiling today, they would be filled with pictures of her shouting tomorrow. As if Finnegan was reading her mind, he produced a clipping from his pocket. It was the picture from the front of the Midnight paper, showing her and Carrion waving to his people.

"So?" Boa couldn't help but ask.

"You look very cosy here, considering you don't like him that much!"

Boa snatched it out of his hand and ripped it half.

"There it's gone, happy now?" Boa asked with tears in her eyes. "Maybe you should just leave Finnegan, you've disgraced me enough today I think."

Someone took her elbow, and Boa looked up to see her brother by her side.

"Come on Boa, let's go," Quiffin said leading her away.

Boa tried not to look at Carrion as she walked past him, but she knew exactly why Carrion hadn't come to her. He'd heard everything that had been said, and wasn't going to embarrass her further by giving the papers something else to print, probably along the lines of "Princess Boa seeks comfort from the Lord of Midnight after lovers tiff." She was grateful for that more than she could say.


	12. To the tower!

**Chapter Twelve**

**Author's note: Wow a whole chapter where Boa doesn't burst into tears! Ok, time check. I've had many chapters all happening in one day, and we're still in that day, so:**

**They all woke up, Boa read the paper and accused Carrion of lying to her father, then they went down to meet Finnegan/Quiffin, and later on they have to have dinner with Mater Motley.**

**That's what's happened so far in Midnight.**

"Urgh!" Boa exclaimed as she got back into the carriage. "I'm so angry!"

Carrion looked at Quiffin to see what he made of this, since he himself seemed always to say the wrong thing to Boa, even if he was making an effort. Quiffin just shrugged at him in a way that expressed he didn't think Boa was about to cry, so it was proberly safe to proceed.

"We could always kill him for you?" Carrion offered after Boa had successfully twisted her skirt into a crumpled mess on her lap.

Boa stared at him.

"You are joking, right?" she asked not entirely sure. She would have taken it as a joke from anyone else, but from Christopher Carrion… you had to be careful what you joked about and agreed to.

"I'm not killing anyone in this shirt, it's pure silk and uncommonly difficult to get clean," Quiffin said inspecting his shirt cuffs.

Carrion frowned.

"You Sir are as bad as Boa, 'Oh, I can't possibly walk with you today, these shoes cost too much to get dirty!'" Carrion said, mimicking something Boa had said to him a long time ago.

Boa blushed scarlet.

"Boa? Expensive shoes?" Quiffin questioned in jest. "She must have been trying to avoid you, because Boa gives all her money to orphans."

Quiffin thought he was doing his sister a good turn by defending her spending habits, but he didn't realise that what he was saying was actually the truth. He hadn't been around to see the coldness between the pair at the beginning; all he had seen was the now.

"Don't get her started on clothes, she'll be begging me for shoes next and I'm not buying more than one item of women's clothing in a week, people will be asking questions," Carrion said making Boa blush even harder, for he had recalled in front of her their meeting in the library.

Quiffin looked like he was going to question that, but Carrion cut him off.

"Back to Hobb," he said saving Boa from further embarrassment. "I hope you two asked him to leave, because I told you before Midnight does not like visitors especially unwelcome ones."

"I think so, actually I don't remember what I said, I was so angry! How dare he come around here, undermining my decisions, demanding I go home with him? I mean, who does he think he is? But to say those things about my brother, who has never been anything but civil to him! No, I don't want to see him again for a very long time," Boa concluded. "And never mind you two, if he turns up here again_, I'll_ kill him!"

"I'd love to see that," Quiffin said in his easy laid back manner. "That man annoys me no end!"

"And I thought he'd be just your cup of tea," Carrion said.

The comment went right over Boa's head, but her brother caught it.

"What's that supposed to mean? Just because I take care over how I look, it does not mean…!" Quiffin said half annoyed half amused.

Boa gasped and rounded on Carrion.

"My brother is not a sissy boy!" she said a little too loudly.

"Now Boa that isn't nice, you shouldn't imply things, who said anything about that?" Carrion asked flipping the joke onto her.

Boa blushed; maybe they had been talking about something else? She bit her lip feeling stupid. Quiffin smirked, he liked embarrassing his sister in front of Carrion, he didn't know why, but he supposed it was some sort of inbuilt sibling sort of thing.

"Well either way, it doesn't bother me," Carrion said holding his hands up. "Each to their own."

Quiffin smirked and winked at him with a click of his tongue in the side of his mouth.

"But that bothers me," Carrion said moving back from him.

"Alright, this is too weird for me," Boa declared folding her arms. "How come Quiffin can be rude to you, but I can't?"

"Your brother is joking; you on the other hand are always too serious," Carrion replied. "Nobody can have a joke with you."

"Ha! That's rich coming from you, Mr Misery-guts. And they can too! I can make jokes, can't I Quiffin. You tell him!" Boa demanded crossly.

"I think Lord Carrion just proved his point there…" Quiffin said quietly. "So, what do you two got planned for later, I was thinking of going to the pub, what'd ya think?"

Boa screwed up her nose.

"We have to dine with granny dearest," she said with a defeated sigh. "And _he_ won't let me decline!"

"Be thankful I'm even accompanying you later, I wasn't actually invited," Carrion replied making Boa turn pale.

"Well, I'm not going… no offence," Quiffin said, tacking the last comment on for good measure. "I try to avoid old people."

* * *

"You're not angry that my brother isn't attending?" Boa asked as they climbed the stairs to Motley's apartments. 

"Grandmother has not invited him, and before you say lucky him, it means that he'll have to introduce himself to her tomorrow. He can do it alone too, because I'm too busy to chaperone everyone who's too scared of the old crone."

"Well, in that case I suppose I ought to thank you for not abandoning me," Boa said sarcastically.

"Well, you're different."

They walked in silence for a while, up the staircase that seemed to never end. Finally Boa had to break the silence.

"Are you seriously not afraid of that woman?" She asked, secretly very impressed.

"I can understand why you would be afraid of her," Carrion replied. "And I can even understand why she might perturb your brother, as full of himself as he is. But no, I do not fear her. I detest her immensely, for reasons I would rather not discuss."

Boa thought for a moment. She could think of many reasons he might hate the woman, but there was a clear winner.

"Is it because of the fire? Do you think she had something more to do with that than we know?"

"I said I'd rather not talk about it. Whatever I said to you in the past about that subject, it does not matter now."

His voice was cold and distant again.

There was a shadow in Carrion's eyes, as if he was recalling things he didn't want to see again. He could vaguely remember talking to Boa about his suspicions years and years ago, be he could not recall what he might have told her.

But Boa would not let it rest.

"But if she helped the fire…then she's guilty! She's taken lives!"

"I said it doesn't matter now!" Carrion almost shouted, but at the last managed to control himself. His pulse was quickening in a state of nervousness that he couldn't control.

"Christopher!" Boa called his thoughts back, she felt there was injustice somewhere and that he didn't care.

Carrion turned to her on the stair, his breath held a second longer in his lungs before exhaling to try and steady himself.

"What would you have me do?" he asked darkly. His voice sounded full of secrets, as if he had wondered down this track before and knew where it lead.

Boa's eyes were wide with uneasiness.

"I don't know, but she should be punished."

"Punished?" Carrion repeated.

He looked at her for a time before beginning again.

"The law in Midnight is thus, plotting to, or succeeding to kill a member of the royal family is treason. Do you know what happens to people convicted of treason Boa? They are sentenced to death, and at whose pleasure? Mine."

Boa just stared at him speechless.

"You want me to kill my own grandmother?" he asked.

"No of course not!" Boa exclaimed shocked.

"Then she remains alive. Besides there is no evidence to link her, believe me, I've looked."

Boa shook her head, it all seemed so unfair. Her confusion, and the belief that the woman should be punished, but knowing she could not be, seemed to show on her face, as Carrion felt compelled to explain further.

"Understand that I hate that woman to my very soul, but I need her alive, just as she needs me so. We are trapped together Boa, in a maze that only gets darker the further you go in. That's why Midnight welcomes you here. I know you can save us."

Boa took his hand, it was gloved in a thin cool material, but she could still feel him through it. Using all her courage she looked him straight in the eye, something she hadn't been able to do for a long while.

"I am sorry I always seem to be questioning you about the way you live your life. I don't always mean to sound like I am disappointed by you. You are not much older than me, yet you always seem to know what to do. You are running a country, I'm running a charity, and I cant even do that properly. I could never be like you," Boa said making sure he knew she meant every word she said with her eyes.

"I shouldn't want you to be. If I could admit my faults as you do I should be a much better person, no good ever came from thinking you are right all the time. I cannot love myself, but I can love you. Don't you dare try to be like me."

Boa closed her eyes as he kissed her on her forehead. There was comfort to be taken from what he had just said. She saw everything he did as being so confident and always right, and to know that he admired her for her doubts made her feel less stupid.

"Now," he said brushing away all that had been said. "Lets go meet the hag before you loose your nerve."

Finally Boa understood that Carrion didn't tolerate his grandmother because he liked her, but because she was useful to him like his leg or his arm. You didn't cut off your leg when it helped you walk. She was just a part of his way of life, a habit. Yet Boa couldn't help but feel a strong curiosity about what had happened to him in the fire that had destroyed his whole family.

Of course they had spoke of it when they were younger, they had talked about everything back then. Her, Quiffin and Carrion had been terrible rebel children, but it had been spoken of through childish games. She longed to know what had happened now he had a grown man's mind and heart.

* * *

Phew, I'm getting there slowly, they might all starve to death if I don't get a move on with the dinner scene. Anyway, it's planned for the next chapter, and Motley is turning out to be the relative from hell in my notebook. Ick.

Anyways, please send me reviews.


	13. I would rather starve

**Chapter Thirteen**

**Author's Note: **This chapter is rather long, so you may want to go make a coffee or something before you begin… or at least turn on the central heating…

Anyway, I HATE dinner parties, I always feel out of my depth at them, so I can really feel for Boa in this chapter.

Well, I worked super hard on this chapter, so I hope you like it!

**I would rather starve**

The room was dark, but Boa found her eyes grew accustomed after a time, and she began to make out shapes within the dim setting. From somewhere in the room, shrouded in darkness came a voice so unimpressed that it sounded almost bored.

"So," it said with a long pause that seemed to come from fatigue than anything else. "That's the princess is it?"

Boa felt Carrion's hand on the small of her back, so very lightly he pushed her forward.

"Take no notice," he instructed. "You've entered the lion's den now, expect to be ripped apart."

Boa looked up into his face with worried eyes. This whole scene looked too much for her. She had never attended any function like this without her mother before now, and she was missing the guidance and the protection that offered.

All right, Boa thought after Carrion refused to respond to her pleading eyes. If she were to be attacked here, she would have to do her best to fight back. After all, she couldn't ever imagine her brother being lost for words, and she was made of the same stuff.

"Grandmother," Carrion said, moving his hand from Boa's back to her shoulder. "Yes, this is Princess Boa."

As they walked forward, Mater Motley's face came into sight. Only her face, pale and heavily marked with age was illuminated, the rest of her hid in shadows. Boa's eyes widened. The hideous face she remembered in the nightmares of her childhood had come to life, the woman looked beyond old to her young eyes.

"Hmfp," was all Motley said to that.

Her pale but piercing eyes ran the length of Boa's dress, finding fault everywhere. Her hips too wide, her waist to small. Her legs too short, her lips too full. Boa could read every disparagement on the old woman's face because she let it show.

"Please take a seat," Carrion offered pulling out a chair for her at the table.

Well at least someone has some manners, Boa thought as she took the chair.

"Thank you," she replied as she sat. "And thank you for the invitation to dine, it was not expected."

She was determined at least to try and be civil and polite, if only for Carrion's sake. Motley was scowling, which was a frightening prospect, she hadn't expected the girl to find her voice in front of her, and she was slightly thrown. She had expected a shy little girl, but this was a confident young woman. But never mind, she would still knock her down.

"A glass of wine for our guest," Carrion ordered, causing a scuttle of servants and a bottle of white wine to be held over Boa's glass.

"Oh, thank you," Boa replied and the waiter began to pour. Boa thought he was being rather generous, until she realised she was supposed to tell him when to stop. "That's lovely."

Carrion took a seat next to Boa, and Motley seated herself opposite them. Even though the table was wide, Boa still felt as if, if she were to move her feet, she'd kick the woman.

There was silence, and no one looked as if they were going to venture a topic. So, Boa took a deep breath and decided she ought to start.

"The weather here is actually rather warm! I was afraid it would be very cold, since there is no sun."

"The sun is not necessary," Motley replied in such a cutting way that Boa felt she should be silent again, but that was impossible, silence would be even worse.

"Well, yes I can see that…" Boa said, her tone sounding hard after her rebuff. She turned to Carrion, "I thought I would have to wear my coat!"

"The warmth is not the weather," Carrion explained. His voice was level and calm, and Boa felt her unease at the prospect of silence disappear. "Outside the city you will freeze unless suitably prepared. The temperature in the city is high through pollution. And they say pollution is bad," Carrion said with a laugh.

"Pollution _is_ bad," Boa corrected.

"Says who?" Carrion challenged.

Boa thought for a moment. Well, everyone, it seemed to be universally acknowledged that pollution was destructive.

"It destroys things," Boa ventured feebly. She felt very inferior. What had she spent all her time learning in school? Why hadn't she ever been taught anything useful? She knew pollution was bad; but it had never really occurred to her that it might advantage some.

"It destroys things," Carrion repeated her innocent words as if they were inspirational to him, as if he had never thought of something so simple in all his life.

"Others may think as they wish, but it has only benefited us. You're rules of what is good and bad seem a little too clear cut for me."

Motley didn't like the conversation; it was too easy flowing. Neither was shy with what their opinions were, and that wasn't what she wanted to be hearing. Not only that, but they were paying her no heed, and she needed to put a stop to it right away.

She looked at Boa, searching for her weakness. It was clear that the girl was full of pride, not vain, but very proud. Knock her in this way, and she would soon succumb to silence.

"You're teeth are rather white," Motley said in such a way that made Boa ashamed of brushing them. "Are they your own?"

Boa's smile vanished. She could have gaped; such was the abruptness of the rude question that Boa didn't know how to reply. She felt she wanted to shout, but gaping and screaming wouldn't look very attractive, so she gripped the tablecloth, and replied.

"Yes. Why?"

"I am glad. I detest unhealthy people. There are too many in Midnight, they should all be horsewhipped. Lazy is what it is. Filthy people living in squalor, it disgusts me."

"Surely that says more about the education and medical treatment these people are receiving than their own personalities. If you put more effort into creating better homes for these people, or better schools for their children…" Boa replied, her mind slipping into work mode. She couldn't believe Motley was confessing to her subjects living in poverty at the dinner table.

"Grandmother disapproves of my hospital, she calls it a waste of time, and calls me far worse things besides. Your reforms will fall on deaf ears," Carrion warned as he saw Boa becoming defensive, and back on her quest for a better life for all.

"You should look after the poor, they are backbone of society," Boa said. She found her words from something she remembered her father saying, and since it was he who said them, she believed in it entirely.

"Then we are crippled to be sure," Motley replied with a smirk. "But if our poor is to be looked after in the way you look after your orphans, then I think they are happy to be ignored."

Boa was put down, she could think of no way to turn the attack around. She was not as skilled at this as the old woman; she had been at a disadvantage from the beginning. But it was not only her that was on the receiving end of the hag's insults; even Lord Carrion was called into disapproval.

"You are looking thin, you are not eating enough. I warned you running backwards and forwards from that accursed island would tell on your face, and all for some numbskull girl!" Motley said, but not in concern for his health, but to disapprove of his actions over the last few years.

"You should take a leaf out of Boa's book, for she looks rather plump," Motley continued not caring where she stabbed her poison.

Boa openly gaped at her now, her mind wouldn't even let her contemplate what she had just been forced to listen to. Plump? No one had ever dared!

"More wine for my grandson!" Motley called.

Either Motley was entirely unaware that her words had been so cutting and offensive, or she was such a good actress that she played the part of being uncaring and not noticing with award winning skill.

She looked away for a moment to give some orders to one of the waiters. Carrion seized his chance to give a kind supportive word to Boa. At least, that was his aim anyway.

"Don't pay any attention, you are not fat."

"Fat!" Boa shrieked bringing all eyes back on her.

"I mean plump!" Carrion quickly amended, but he had no idea what had caused offence. He'd spoken the truth after all.

He had no idea why the mention of Boa's weight had knocked her for six, he himself never cared three straws for his clothing measurements, and so it was incomprehensible to him. She looked the perfect figure to him, true she wasn't skinny, but he wouldn't want her that way. How she could even consider his grandmother's words was insane.

Of course, had he had more experience with ladies, he would have realised that mentioning the three lettered F word in their presence, especially in such a flippant way was a no no. As it was, he had learned today that it induced hysterics.

Motley made sure Carrion was served more of everything than anyone else, and she watched his plate like a hawk.

"You are going to eat all of that," she instructed as if speaking to a child. "If I have to see anymore of your bones poking though your skin…"

She didn't need to end her sentence; the company already knew the punishment would be nasty.

Boa paled, the thought of bones sticking through skin wasn't doing too much for her appetite, plus the fact that all she could see on her plate was calories.

While there was a moment of blissful quiet, the waiter picked up the gravy boat and offered to pour some on Boa's dinner. She moved her cutlery out of the way and waited, but Motley beat her to it.

"No gravy for the princess, she's watching her weight."

Right that's it, Boa decided. No wonder Carrion was as he was when constant putdowns were dinnertime conversation.

"So," Motley said.

Boa looked at the ceiling; if there was anyone up there, please would they save her now?

"Here we go again," she said under her breath, she caught Carrion smiling out of the corner of her eye.

"This one's staying is she?"

"Yes," Carrion answered before taking a sip of his wine.

"Don't say 'yes' like that, you know what my question meant!" Motley clearly wasn't happy with the reply.

Boa didn't understand the question; she kept her eyes on the table decorations. They were decidedly depressing she thought.

"Your question is distasteful in the present company, you will keep questions like that to yourself until I choose to answer them."

Boa looked up now, Motley had been silenced. Carrion was back on her side, the tables had turned. This was her chance to strike back; she had taken too much abuse already.

"I must say," Boa said, taking her time to complete her sentence with a long leisurely pause. "That has to be the ugliest dress I have ever seen. What's it made of? Dead things?"

"Yes," Motley replied calmly. She watched the girl start; you weren't expecting that were you princess?

"Oh," Boa said at the unexpectedness of the answer, and then "Oh," again in disgust.

"Grandmother is _making_ a grand army."

"Making?"

"Yes, making. It requires great skill, and only the best seamstresses in Midnight are allowed to assist with its creation. When it is finished it will be the greatest army ever seen."

"Why would you need such an army Christopher? Such an army as you describe, an unnatural one, could only mean unhappiness, unease and even death to many. What are your plans that you cannot progress without words or negotiations?"

"Our plans will not be welcomed. Why! Even your father has an army, why shouldn't my grandson, Lord of Midnight, be without the same power? He will have the greatest army ever beheld, and no one will ever challenge him. That is my gift to him, I do my duty by the Lord as every subject will do."

Boa thought that a poor return for a murdered family.

"They will hate you, power is always looked upon with fearful eyes. Why bring that upon yourself?" She turned to Carrion directly. "You are respected for your leadership and strength of character, why choose to be respected only because you are feared?"

"What I choose to do is none of your concern," he said, and then dropping his voice so Motley wouldn't hear, he added, "One day you may be entitled to advise and order me, but not yet."

"An army will secure the Carrion family forever, and this bloodline, my blood into the future," Motley said proudly.

"Grandmother has a thing about blood."

"Yes, I can believe…"

"She believes it should be kept pure. She wishes me to marry a maiden from Midnight. I think even a peasant girl would do as long as she was Midnight born," Carrion said jokingly.

"A Midnight girl from a quality family will know her place and will never shame you, and your children would be true heirs, not _crossbreeds_," Motley said looking at Boa as if she was one of these 'crossbreeds'.

Boa, as usual, missed the underhand meaning of what was being said.

"Well, maybe your grandmother is right?"

Carrion gave her a hard stare and Motley sat back in her chair. Yes, turn on one another; break each other now where I can see it. It was so easy to do, to set them fighting when they had been so united before.

"Why did you even come here?" Carrion demanded sharply.

Boa blinked and looked at him blankly.

"Pardon?" she enquired.

"Is this some sort of plan you arranged with Hobb? Humiliation is it? I can promise you now, that should he ever show his face again on my island he will wish he had not!"

"What are you talking about?" Boa queried.

"I'm talking about your games!"

Boa was flustered with confusion, and her mind was desperately trying to recall what she might have said wrong, but she could not find what had caused this argument. Her eyes moved rapidly, searching his for some sort of clue.

"All I said was, maybe your grandmother's right. Only 'maybe'. I don't understand and how I've offended you."

"Perhaps the princess feels herself unworthy. She could not marry someone as high standing as my grandson, she is not of the same social standing after all."

Boa looked up sharply. Not of the same social standing? How dare she?

"I am! I am a princess. I can marry Christopher, I can!"

"Boa sit down," Carrion ordered.

Boa didn't even realise she had stood up.

"Well, I stand corrected," Motley, replied, a smile on her face. Her work was done; all she need do now was watch it all fall apart.

Boa refused desert and left the room, she could not stand another minute of being insulted. Enough was enough; she would wait for Carrion outside the door.

**Word Count: **2,610… I need to take a break now.


	14. Drinking isn't a game

**Drinking isn't a game**

The music was so loud that to speak to one another, the trio had to shout or use hand signals to get their points across. This was easier than it seemed, since all that was being communicated was 'Same again?' and 'Your round.'

Boa swallowed the last of her third bottle of suspiciously blue, sickly sweet concoction and waited for someone to buy her another one. She hit Carrion on the top of his arm, dragging his attention away from the singer on the stage, and pointed to her empty bottle. Repeatedly doing both until he was forced to move, just for some peace.

Carrion set down his glass, shuffled out of his chair and went up to the bar, Boa watched him for a moment, and then decided to follow. She sat on a barstool next to him.

"Do you come here often?" she asked smiling, and putting her empty bottle on the bar.

"Knock it of Boa, you know I do," Carrion replied as he tried to wave the barman over.

"What is that you're drinking anyway?" Carrion turned Boa's drink around and observed the colour.

The conclusion that he came to was, that it was blue.

"Yeah, that's because it's blueberry flavour, duh!" Boa informed him, swatting his hand away from her drink.

"You wont get very far drinking that."

"But I like this one!" Boa exclaimed.

Carrion was still trying to catch the barman, since there were so many people waiting to be served, it seemed like they would be having a long wait. That was, until the barman realised who he was of course. Boa, annoyed that she no longer had his attention, began waving her empty bottle about in front of them.

"I'm not buying you another one of those, you'll have to choose something else," he snapped grabbing the glass out of her hand and putting it down. Too drunk to argue, Boa just frowned.

"Fine, well what's that?" she asked pointing.

The bartender, who had finally found a moment to attend them, picked up the bottle and filled two small glasses for them. Boa eyed it suspiciously.

"He didn't give us much, did he?" Boa complained holding the small glass. "It can't be that bad, nothing is ever that bad!"

The clear liquid burnt Boa's mouth, bringing tears to her eyes, and had the most disgusting taste she had ever experienced. She fell into a fit of coughing.

"And how was your first taste of… what the hell are we drinking?"

The Bartender showed them the bottle.

"Magic white rum, Mi'lord," he informed them.

Boa swallowed hard and tried to rid herself of the taste.

"Delicious," she replied blinking the tears away. "I want that one now!"

Carrion raised an eyebrow, but later became to drunk to even notice what he was ordering; they had pretty much had a shot of everything going.

Boa was laughing so hard that she didn't even know what she was laughing at. None of the women on stage were wearing very much, and that seemed hilarious. Some bloke had fallen over behind them, she couldn't pick up her drink anymore, and she'd knocked her leg on the edge of the bar and laddered her tights.

They were so distracted that neither was paying much attention to anything other than drinking. Suddenly Boa looked up confused. She started gazing around as if she had lost something, as if she couldn't remember where she had put it, or indeed what she had lost.

"Where's Quiffin?" she asked still searching.

"He probably left with that barmaid," was Carrion's flippant reply.

Boa almost choked.

"What?" she screamed, making people's heads turn around them. "Where'd he go?"

"He probably went back." Carrion waved the question away, who cared anyway?

"Yeah, but where's he gone?" Boa asked again.

"How should I know?" Carrion replied. "Have another drink."

"I can't have another drink, not when I don't know where he is!" Boa declared, climbing off her seat and waiting until her vision stopped spinning so she could take a step forward.

"Quiffin can look after himself."

But Boa wouldn't be distracted, she was on a mission, and a drunk person on a mission was not an easy person to reason with.

Even after he said so, Carrion was already following Boa to the exit.

"I have to find him," Boa said, stumbling to the side to avoid someone barging past her. Acting as if it was greatly important, as if Quiffin might be in some serious danger.

"Wait," Carrion asked grabbing onto her arm."Where are you going?"

He didn't want to loose her in the crowd, she was now a danger to herself, not that he was in any fitter state, but at least he wasn't near hysterical was his reasoning.

Boa couldn't remember, she didn't even remember how she had got to the door, suddenly she felt upset. Nothing made any sense.

"I don't know, I think I… I just want to go outside, I don't feel well…"

Carrion grabbed her hand and pulled her along behind him. Boa followed faithfully, not able to steer herself or think to walk somewhere else, she was trusting him fully to get her outside before she collapsed on the floor in the busy room.

The cold air was what Boa's lungs needed, so filled with the heat and smoke of the room, the fresh air woke her up and her eyes began to see again. Carrion led her away from the crowds.

"Right, that's the last time I take you out," Carrion announced holding her up.

"Shut up!" Boa told him, and then she bent over and away from him. "Oh, I feel sick."

Carrion let her go, and Boa sat down on the floor, her head in her hands.

"Mind the shoes."

Boa looked at his shoes, how many was he wearing? One, two, three, four…and they kept moving, or was she moving? Side to side.

"You are so unkind, do you really not feel sick? I could throw up ten times! Maybe more!" she said looking up at him, but finding that angle made her head worse, she went back to her former position.

"Go on then," he teased. "I can wait."

Boa found his lack of compassion very annoying, she was sure that she was dieing here on the floor, and he just didn't care!

"Ew! You're disgusting, I'm not going to throw up for your amusement!"

"Who said I was going to be watching? I think its you who's being disgusting, not me."

"No I'm not!" Boa replied as if it was the most important argument in the world.

"I think you are," Carrion retorted, enjoying how wound up she was getting.

"I am so not! It's your fault I feel sick anyway, if you hadn't of taken me here in the first place… ahhh, you're so annoying!"

"I guess we should go home then, since you're good for nothing now."

"I am so good for nothing! Wait, no, good for something, like… like… well ok, maybe not right now… but I so am."

"What are you talking about?" Carrion asked. He had totally lost the tread.

"What?"

"Great, you don't even know."

"What?"

"You can stop that."

"What?"

"That!"

"What? What am I doing?"

"Right, we're going home, get up," he demanded, forgetting Boa wasn't sitting on the floor out of choice.

"I cant!" Boa whined, hitting his hand away. "You'll have to carry me!"

"I'm not carrying you."

"Why? Because you've got weedy little arms?" Boa pushed herself up; she was surprised that she was still able to move since her head was still swimming.

She grabbed hold of the top of his arm for support.

"Alright, so you don't have weedy arms," she concluded, trying to poke him in the arm, but missing and poking him in the chest. "But that means nothing Mr!"

"Are you saying I'm not strong enough to pick you up?" Carrion asked, tightening his grip around her so she couldn't get away.

Boa shook her head and grinned.

"I know you can," Boa said as she was lifted off the floor in a tight hug.

Boa put her arms around his neck and rested her head on him, she felt tired, and happy to be held, it was making her feel much less vulnerable.

There were multiple flashes of light, one after another, lighting up the entire road for the briefest of moments. Boa looked up at the sky.

"Lightning?" she asked, her face skywards. "Will it rain?"

Carrion didn't answer; he was looking more towards the shadows. The press had found them; it had taken them long enough, but let her think it was the weather if she so wished.

"Let's get inside," Carrion suggested putting her down.

"No, lets stay like this," Boa whined, reluctant to move, he had been keeping her warm.

"Come on."

Carrion hailed down a passing carriage. The occupant looked out the window annoyed. His disposition changed however, and so did his destination, when he realised who the hitchhikers where.

"Of course My Lord, please my carriage is yours! I was just going to the towers, I always do so on my way home; I go to admire their greatness and splendour."

Liar, Carrion thought, but they had a ride. Let the man sell his story to the papers, he looked the type.

'_Princess Boa couldn't keep her hands to herself. The majority of the ride had found her locked in a passionate kiss with his Lord Midnight, to which our witness had felt obliged to stop the carriage and vacate his seat.' _

Carrion could see it now, at least some of it would be true, and who knew the girl could be so clingy. As for the man getting out of the carriage, he'd have done no such thing.

"100 paterzem for your silence sir," Carrion offered as they got out.

"My words are worth more."

"Do as you will with your words," Carrion said throwing the money at him. "Your silence is mine."

"I don't understand. You want me to tell the papers?"

"I think you do understand very well," Carrion said, careful with what he said lest Boa should overhear.

Carrion might have felt a stab of remorse for is actions when he saw Boa's face later when she found the paper, but it wasn't her he was trying to hurt, it was Finnegan. Let him be filled with rage, let him come after him. He was winning now, let him try.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Tsk, what drink does to you hey... at least she didnt fall over, that will be saved as my party trick me thinks. 


	15. Exploring the City

**Author's Note**: Brother's are so annoying. Although I'd like to think my brother would take more of an interest in where I was last night, rather than just pulling the girls.

**Exploring the City**

Boa was dragging her feet, she was sure she had never walked so far in her life, she swore she could feel the dirt sticking to her skin and all she could think of was the facial creams she would have to apply to get it off. It was safe to say that she wasn't enjoying herself. Her skin was already suffering, missing its daily dose of sunlight, and she knew she was getting paler by the minute.

"First chemist we see, I'm buying a chap-stick, my lips are going to crack in half," Boa said to her brother's turned back. He was leading the way down the seemingly empty street.

"Ok, I don't know what one of those is, but right-o," he replied. "Probably all that alcohol you drank."

Boa doubled her steps and walked beside him, she ignored his comment, and she refused to comment on what had happened last night.

"How come we've been walking for ages, and we haven't yet seen a single shop? What kind of place is this?"

"Well what do you call that?" Quiffin asked pointing behind her.

Boa looked at the building he was pointing at.

"That's a shoe shop, that doesn't count," Boa declared turning her back on it.

"Right, great logic."

"Exactly where are we again?"

Quiffin looked at the map, Boa had been moaning ever since they'd left that morning, secretly he thought she might have a bad hangover, but Boa wouldn't admit it.

"Well, I rather think we are in Gorgossium," he replied.

Boa scowled.

"Oh ha ha," she said snatching the street map from his hands. "I don't reckon you know where we're going. I think we've just been going around in circles!"

Quiffin sat down on the curb, his sister was right, he didn't know where he was going, but he wasn't about to let her win.

"I'll navigate," Boa decided, and then she frowned. "This map is really rubbish, there's even a hole in it, where'd you get it anyway?"

"From Lord Carrion's library, he said to take one."

"Yes, but did he say to take one that was printed fifty years ago? I bet some of these places don't even exist anymore," Boa mumbled trying to locate their position on the map. Quiffin looked down at the floor, ok, that was slightly embarrassing. "Hey, we're by the sea! I knew we had walked miles. I guess we should go to the beach then, at least we'll see something today."

The sea in the moonlight was an eerie sight to behold, it seemed to stretch into forever, and growing darker the further it got towards the horizon. In the sunshine, Boa would've seen thousands of colours in the water, but here there were only variations of the same one.

The only lights were those of fishing vessels bobbing in the water trying to get a good catch, and the moonlight creating a pathway across the water.

There were children on the beach, building sandcastles out of the dark ground pebbles. Once they had built their own, they went in search of the ones left by previous occupants and jumped on them until there was nothing left. Boa hurried down to the water's edge and peered into the water. So far, Midnight seemed like a pretty ordinary place, but of course she couldn't judge yet, since all she had seen was the inside of a bar and the sea..

"Ready?" she called to Quiffin.

"Ready for what?"

"Swimming!"

"Oh give over, you know I don't swim, besides, there's no sun to dry you off here."

Boa shrugged and pulled off her shoes.

"What are you doing?" Quiffin asked, catching her shoes as they were thrown at him.

"I'm going in the sea, come on!"

Boa kept stepping on hidden pebbles and broken shells as she walked through the surf, she was sure she'd cut her feet in more than one place. Quiffin followed behind, keeping well out of the water, he followed Boa until they came to a more populated area of the beach.

Most of the people here appeared to be teenagers, laughing and joking, trying to cook food over makeshift barbeques and not caring how it turned out. The smell of the cooking food made Boa hungry.

"There must be somewhere to eat around here."

Quiffin looked around, there was another entrance to the town at the top of the beach, and he surmised that they must have come across some sort of small harbour.

"Let's head that way," he said pointing to the lighted sign over the entrance. Boa nodded and dusted off her feet.

They didn't have to walk very far to find a place selling food, every other building was specialising in some sort of dish. Deciding on somewhere simple, the pair headed for an out of the way café on a side street. Although it was out of the way, it wasn't any less busy. First they had to share a table with another couple, and then when a table in the corner became free they moved.

Slowly the place began to empty as the rush subsided, and the atmosphere became more comfortable. They had started a tab at the bar, and so far had added on it a coke and a chocolate milkshake. They were about the place their food order when someone familiar arrived.

Boa spotted him first, and grabbed the menu.

"Are you hiding?" Quiffin asked smirking.

"No," Boa said quickly, "I'm reading the menu."

"Hey, over here!" Quiffin shouted over the babble of talking. Even though he was shouting, no one seemed to be paying him much attention; only the man at the door looked his way. "You can't hide anymore Boa."

"You're mean," she hissed setting the menu down, she was blushing, she could feel it. She gave Carrion a shy smile as he sat down next to her brother.

"You took your time," Quiffin complained, snatching the menu out of Boa's hands.

"Hey!"

"You were expecting me were you?" Carrion asked.

"No, but if you'd have come sooner I might have had some peace, nothing but moan, moan, moan," he directed at Boa.

Boa took the menu back, making Quiffin laugh.

"Only because you were leading us the wrong way, and I'm using this menu, because clearly you cannot read at all."

Quiffin ignored her.

"How'd you find us? We didn't exactly stick to the plan, in fact _I_ don't even know where we are," Quiffin asked finishing his coke.

"Magic," Carrion replied.

"Really?" Boa asked interested.

"No."

Boa narrowed her eyes at him, they were both against her, and this wasn't going to be a friendly meal.


	16. Dining Disaster

**Dining Disaster**

Quiffin chatted into the silence, he had hoped to use this as a perfect opportunity to embarrass Boa further, (since as a brother he considered that to be one of his duties) however he hadn't banked on feeling awkward himself. Carrion was refusing to speak, and Boa looked like she'd forgotten how to, either way, the situation was uncomfortable. In the end Quiffin gave up trying to make a conversation and opted for an escape plan.

"Do you two want me to go and place an order?" Quiffin asked in an attempt to leave the table, if that failed he'd state he needed the bathroom. "Because I'm pretty hungry…"

At first there was no answer, Carrion was looking at Boa to reply, and Boa was looking anywhere but; pretending she hadn't heard. Quiffin bit the inside of his lip in thought, and winced as Carrion pushed the menu at him hitting his arm, the movement had made his teeth draw blood.

"Yes, go order," Carrion replied not looking at him, Boa looked his way for a second and then turned her head away again.

Quiffin seized this as the perfect opportunity, and not even asking what they might want to eat, got up out of his chair and scurried away. He glanced over his shoulder at the pair, and felt only slightly guilty for leaving his sister in such a situation, but most of him was filled with relief at having got away.

The waitress looked annoyed that he had come to order at the bar, instead of remaining in his seat and letting her take the order, she knew she wouldn't be getting a tip from them now.

"Well, what can I get you?" she asked, dragging Quiffin's attention away from the table.

"Erm…" he fumbled, "I need another minute to decide."

Carrion seemed to have sensed that Quiffin was no longer paying them any attention; it was as if he could feel the eyes in his back, and when they looked away he was ready to strike.

"Are you going to speak to me, or are we going to sit here in silence?" he asked.

Boa was forced to look at him, she tried to keep a steely hard look on her face, because she didn't want him to know she was embarrassed, even if she had already shown it.

"I'd rather not," she replied. "You rarely have anything nice to say in reply, so what's the point?"

"Well, you rarely have anything of interest to say, so how can you blame me?"

Boa's jaw locked. Carrion knew this probably wasn't going to end well, but at least they had broken the horrible silence of before, he would rather she shout at him than ignore him.

"Perhaps I just cant be bothered to say anything remarkable when I'm with you, you seem to know it all already after all, you might as well just talk to yourself!"

"You're right, I get no sense out of you. I'd rather talk to that idiot Finnegan Hobb than be sat here with you, and you can take that look off your face, you're not fooling anyone."

Boa didn't realise her face was carrying any kind of look, but if it did she guessed it would be something along the lines of outrage.

"You leave him out of this," she shouted.

Carrion smirked, he didn't mean to be cruel and teasing, but Boa seemed to always bring out that side of him whenever they were together. It wasn't something either one had much control over, both inclined to be argumentative, and not finding anyone else that would argue them back, apart from one another.

"Maybe you could give me some tips on how to forget about Hobb, as you seem to be every good at it."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing, just that he didn't seem to feature last night, did he?"

Boa fixed him with an icy glare, her posture was frozen, and even Carrion thought her reaction was alarming; she seemed to have completely shut down in anger.

Boa sat there for some minutes staring at him, Carrion noticed her fingers begin to twitch which had been resting on the table moments before. All of a sudden Boa stood up, with such force that she attracted the attention of all the other diners, they looked at her in bewilderment.

"I hate you! I can't stand you! I'm going home, don't try and stop me," Boa declared pushing her chair backwards and heading towards the door.

Carrion sat for a second, he didn't want to go calling her back, but it seemed he would have no choice. Boa wasn't lying when she said she was leaving, she was almost at the door already.

"Boa, wait," he called after her as he followed her quickly, pushing a waitress out of the way as he did so.

As soon as Boa knew he was following, she doubled her pace and grabbed her brother's arm on the way.

"We're going, now," she commanded, dragging him into the path of Carrion, who then had to push him out of the way also to continue after Boa.

"Hey, watch it!" Quiffin shouted, loosing his dignity in front of the waitress he had just been chatting up, by falling into the counter.

Boa reached the door, not noticing that the café's 'open' sign had been turned around to 'closed', and she therefore opened the door to receive a bright flash of light in her face. Boa slammed the door again. She turned around with a look of contempt on her face.

"What are they doing here?" Boa demanded as Carrion pulled her away from the door. "Did you bring them here?"

Carrion's hand tightened around Boa's wrist making her wince. He held it in such a way that forced her to stand very close to him to relieve some of the pain.

"Why would I do that?" he asked rhetorically. "You listen here, you cannot go wandering all over Midnight without them finding you. Everybody in the city is interested in why you are here; you cannot blame them for wanting pictures. Throwing a fit every time you meet a camera wont make them go away, if you don't like it, stay indoors."

Boa snatched her hand way, it wasn't as if she went out with the intention of getting photographed, Carrion was making it seem like she was asking for it. She sat down on the nearest chair and folded her arms.

Quiffin, who had been hovering behind them, not sure whether to step in or leave them alone, suggested that perhaps they all ought to go out the back way, and avoid the press. Carrion agreed that was probably for the best, but Boa refused to leave the café without eating something, saying she hadn't come all this way to go home hungry.

Eventually the trio managed to get their food to go, and found their way out through the kitchens into a small alleyway behind the establishment. Quiffin lead the way down the alley, none of them knowing where they were going, but just happy to be walking again rather than speaking. Thankfully the embarrassment seemed to have disappeared, but now they were just filled with anger at one another, and anger was much easier a feeling to cope with.

The alley ended at the entrance to the beach, and deciding that they might as well eat their food before it became too cold, the three headed onto the beach and found shelter under the sea-wall.

Boa grabbed the bag out of Quiffin's hands, she was so hungry that she felt ill, she opened it greedily and looked inside, everything was wrapped up in paper or in polystyrene boxes. She pulled out a box and opened it, she found a cheeseburger and frowned as she passed it to Carrion who had sat himself next to her.

"I don't eat cheese," she told him in an angry sort of way that implied he should have known that already.

Quiffin grabbed the box from Carrion before he had a chance to say anything or could even consider eating it himself.

"Yeah I know, what a shame hey? I mean, it's a shame everything I ordered just _happened_ to have cheese on it… oh dear, what a mistake I've made," Quiffin said, the more he spoke the less Boa looked in the bag, by the end she'd thrown that at Carrion too. "You'll just have to starve."

"You did that on purpose!" Boa said turning away from them so that they were looking at her back.

Quiffin made a funny face at her turned back.

"Well, duh," he then added.

Carrion, who had spent his time emptying the bag rather than become involved in another argument, pushed a box into her arm to get her attention.

"Look, noodles," he said, holding the box out but looking at the other packages as he did so.

Boa turned around to find the box in her face. She snatched it out of his hand.

"Who are you calling _noodles_?" she asked accusingly. "It had better not be me!"

Quiffin stepped in before Boa lost her cool again, or before Carrion could ask her what she was talking about.

"In the box stupid, I got you noodles, geeze, some people are dense."

Boa blushed and sank back against the wall out of sight. Her head was aching, her stomach was empty and she felt _stupid_ indeed, although things were looking up at the prospect of noodles, and at least they were all speaking again. All in all, she supposed it could have been worse, much worse.

**

* * *

****A/N: **Oh ouch, this chapter killed my brain. Sorry it took so long, but this chapter is probably version number 23 of this scene, it's been reworked a lot of times, earlier versions ending with a machine gun massacre, or at least a massive punch up, see how lucky you all are that it ended with everyone's limbs still attached! 


	17. The Letter

**The Letter**

Aelda, Boa's maid looked on wearily as Boa fussed over what she would wear that evening. There was a pile of clothes now on the end of the bed, which Boa kept picking up and putting down.

"He said, theatre, so I want to look sophisticated. But not too smart if it turns out to be a comedy, and I can't wear a bright colour if it's a tragedy. What if it's an opera? I'd better wear a cocktail dress… what do you think?"

"I think the dark silver one, with the black fur collar," Aelda replied only half paying attention.

She had a schedule on her knee; it was a timetable of when things happened in the Midnight tower. It had taken a while to get hold of, but now it was invaluable, and she was trying to learn it off by heart. The kitchens seemed to only serve food at certain times, maids only appeared in hallways in alterative timeslots, and there were regimented changing of the guards. None of which Boa had appeared to notice, and then again, why would she. These people were all here to look after her, there was no need to know how they worked.

"That's a very good idea," Boa said holding up the silver dress. "But unless it's in bright light, it looks grey."

"Exactly, it'll be dark for a tragedy, bright for a comedy, there's nothing to worry about."

Boa took the dress over to the mirror and held it up against herself. Back home she would have had more people around her to help her decide, but with only Aelda, she had to trust her advice.

"It's a bit fussy," Boa said staring in the mirror.

"That's what people want to see. They want to see you dressed like a princess; after all, you're the only one they've seen. You ought to give them something to look at."

Boa stared at herself again and shrugged. Aelda was right, she hadn't been dressing much like she should since she'd arrived. Mainly because there was no one here to make her. But if Aelda advised a more showy dress, then that's what she would wear.

"You know, I don't think I've been to the theatre for years. At least, not a real one. Father had people perform in the palace, but it's not the same. Plus I like to look at other people's faces, see if they're enjoying it as much as me."

"There will be many people there," Aelda replied still looking at her papers.

Boa smiled at herself and then hung the dress on the door of the wardrobe for later.

They were for the theatre tonight, mainly because Carrion couldn't think of anything else to do with them, and also because his Grandmother had expressed a wish for another dinner.

Boa had been easy to win over, as soon as he had mentioned the theatre she stopped sulking about their earlier argument, and had become cheerful again. Her pessimistic brother only agreed to come when Carrion told him he couldn't care if he went of not.

The rest of the day he managed to salvage for himself, managing to see people who wanted to tell him their problems. Whilst he sat in the dark listening to person after person, Boa spent the rest of the day readying herself for the evening.

Quiffin disappeared again, and when he returned he looked flustered and nervous. The last person he wanted to see was Lord Carrion, and he couldn't control the look of panic in his eyes.

"What do you have there?" Carrion asked looking down at the letter in Quiffin's hand. "Addressed to you is it?"

Quiffin's hands itched as they became hot with nervousness. He should have put the letter in his pocket before he walked into the tower, but he had been in too big of a rush.

"Well, not exactly, but I have to deliver it. So, I'll see you later," he said dodging around Carrion and continuing up the hall.

Once he was out of sight, Carrion clicked his fingers for a servant.

"I want that letter," he said. "Bring it to me."

The servant nodded, a small shape of a man, with hands too large and disproportionate for his body. He scuttled away after Quiffin. He followed him all the way to Boa's room, and hid around the corner as Quiffin knocked. Boa's maid opened the door, rolled her eyes and let him in.

"Boa, I've got something for you," Quiffin said, knowing that those few words would certainly get his sister's attention.

Boa stopped what she was doing instantly, and walked towards him. She held out her hand without speaking. There was something about Boa that had changed since she had been in Midnight. Quiffin wondered why he hadn't got a reaction, and held onto the letter tightly.

"Don't you want to know what it is first?" he asked.

"If it's for me, then you can just handed over," she replied still holding out her hand. "Come on."

Quiffin frowned. Boa refused to beg him for the letter, and Quiffin was forced to hand it over. There was no sport to be made with her today.

Boa opened the letter and read the content. She looked up with a slightly alarmed look on her face. Quiffin saw the look of panic, and began to worry himself.

"Where did you get this?" Boa asked seriously.

"Someone gave it to me on the street," he confessed. "I thought it would be safe, I swear I never would have taken it if I thought it would harm you."

What he really wanted to ask was; what did it say? But he knew Boa wouldn't tell him if he asked, and judging by the mood he'd just put her in, she wasn't likely to tell him either.

"Someone on the street? What did they look like? Did they say they would wait for a reply?" she asked, firing question after question as they came into her mind.

"Calm down Boa, unless you want to tell what it says. No I didn't see what they looked like, because he was wearing a hood."

"So, it was a man? But he didn't look familiar?" she pressed.

Quiffin shook his head.

"No, I didn't get a good look."

Boa looked back at the letter, and handed it to Aelda. Aelda's eyes skimmed the page quickly before she folded it up. Quiffin tried to look at the writing through the underside of the letter, but could only make out the word 'Boa'.

"What are you going to do?" he asked.

"Do?" Boa questioned. "Do? I'm going to go walk in the garden, just me and Aelda, you can go away."

Boa took her coat from the stand, and shoved Quiffin out the door. Aelda waited for instruction as to what to do with the letter.

"Put that in my diary, and lock it. Don't want people snooping," Boa said pulling her coat on.

Carrion's servant climbed through the window as soon as the door was closed and the room empty. He headed straight for the diary, and rather than remove the letter, took the entire lot.

**Again, sorry for the long delay in updates, but I have a brand new PC now, and no longer have to fight my brother for the internet (long live wireless broadband) so, I should be able to update more frequently. Thank you everyone for the reviews, and have a merry Christmas!**


	18. Confessions II

**Confessions**

The letter was crushed in Carrion's palm, as he contemplated throwing it into the fire. The diary's lock lay broken on the floor and the book open to the last written on page on the table.

"She has read this?" Carrion asked.

The room was deathly quiet except for the crack of embers burning in the grate. His servant bowed before he answered, and remained low as he spoke. There was no way of telling what Carrion's reactions would be, so it was best to appear humble from the very beginning.

"Yes my Lord. Prince Quiffin took it straight to her."

He saw Carrion close his eyes against the news, and his grip tightened on the letter.

"You may leave," Carrion said.

His servant bowed again, this time lower, and before he left the room, he saw his master throw the letter into the fire. He closed the door and wondered what had been on the paper, but it was a mystery he was never going to know the answer to.

The edges of the paper turned brown as it curled, and the flames burnt a hole in the middle. Carrion watched the words disappear into smoke, burning away as if they had never been written.

The letter could be destroyed, but the repercussions were going to last for a long time. There were two things he could do now, either let things continue as if he had never seen the letter, or intervene. He weighed up the advantages of both against each other.

The wind outside was bitterly cold today, and the outdoor lamps were flickering as they fought to stay alight. Boa pulled her coat closer around her chest, and held it tightly around her neck to keep out the chill.

"I haven't been out here since we arrived," She commented as she walked.

Aelda shivered in the cold.

"I don't think you've been missing much. It doesn't look like they go in for ornate gardens here," Aelda replied looking around with distain.

Boa lead the way down a path that began to wind around the tower. It was nothing like her home, which was bursting with flowers and always smelled sweet with pollen. Here it was gloomy, with shadows cast over mysterious objects which decorated the grounds. Parts of old statues began to appear the further they walked.

"It's an angel," Boa said walking towards a carved figure of a woman. It was laying on it's side, half buried in the ground.

Aelda looked around once more, she was disliking this place more and more. Statues of angels meant only one thing. She watched Boa examine the face with her hands.

"It's a gravestone Boa. You're standing on someone's grave."

Boa snatched her hands back instantly and stepped away. She felt a chill run up her back, and the view she had seen before her changed drastically. She was no longer walking in royal grounds, she was walking in a graveyard.

"Let's stick to the path," Boa decided.

"You still want to walk through here? You'll be walking on people's graves!" Aelda exclaimed.

"They won't mind," Boa replied before picking her way around the mud on the path.

The graves grew closer together the further they went, but Boa could make out none of the names on the stones. She would need her own lamp if she was to explore them more carefully. She wondered as she went, who the graves belonged to? They all looked very old, and clearly no one buried their dead here any more.

"Maybe the graves are empty?" Boa mused. "You wouldn't want to anger any spirits by living so close to them. Maybe it's memorials to the missing?"

Aelda didn't reply, something had passed across the corner of her eye and she had paused in her tacks.

"What was that?" she asked alarmed. "Did you see it?"

"What is it?" Boa asked peering into the darkness.

Aelda shook her head, and touched Boa's arm to keep her still. They listened intently for any sound, but all they could hear was the wind whistling over the grass and over the graves.

Boa laughed nervously, and began walking again, but before she had even taken two steps, someone jumped out in front of her.

Both women screamed, and Aelda rushed forward and pushed the man backwards, instinctively to protect Boa. There was a yell as the man fell over onto the ground.

"Bloody hell!" he exclaimed as he fell.

Boa kicked the man in the leg, not caring if it hurt him or not.

"Quiffin, I hate you!"

Her brother looked up at her grinning.

"I _scared_ you," he said happily. "You thought it was a ghost, I know you did. Don't try denying it!"

He made a ghostly 'whoo-ing' noise which resulted in him being hit again, this time in the arm. Boa took her maid's arm as she stomped past him, and ignored his taunting.

"Aw, come on Boa, it was only a joke," he said once he realised he was being ignored.

"Well it wasn't funny," Boa replied, refusing to look at him. "You know this place gives me the creeps."

"No. How was I supposed to know that? A few days ago you told Carrion that you liked it here," Quiffin reasoned. "How was I supposed to know you were lying?"

Boa turned to face him.

"I wasn't lying!" she exclaimed indignantly. "You don't understand what's going on here. You don't know anything!"

Quiffin studied her face. He had be torn the whole time he had been here, as to whether Boa was actually enjoying herself or not. One minute she'd look as if she could burst into tears, and the next she was smiling, seemingly without a care. But something wasn't right with her now, and he had his suspicions that it had something to do with the letter.

"Well, why don't you tell me then?" he asked.

To him it was pretty straight forward. Boa either wanted to stay or she didn't. She either wanted to marry Carrion or she didn't, since this was what it was all leading towards. All this vacillation between the two was confusing to him.

Boa sighed. She trusted her brother to listen to her worries, but she didn't trust herself enough to explain them properly. Everything was so confused in her own head, that she didn't know what she was doing anymore. Trying to live one day at a time was just as hard as looking forwards.

"Aelda, I think I want to talk to my brother alone for a while."

Her maid nodded, glad to leave the graves, and let the pair continue walking into the darkness, and towards a grove of trees.

Boa took her time in choosing her first words, how she began this would probably determine the entire conversation. There was so much she wanted to say, but she also felt ashamed to admit her feelings in this way.

"I wish you could simply guess what I'm feeling; it hurts to bring it all to the surface," Boa said gazing at the trees that were now over their heads.

"I wish that too," Quiffin said,

He didn't want to face the fact that whatever she might now tell him, he might not be able to help her with. Being older didn't automatically make him wiser. Yes, he had experienced more of life than she had, but it didn't mean anything that he had experienced was useful now.

"I know what you want me to say. You want me to say I'm happy here, but I can't say that. I don't think I would be happy anywhere that I went."

Quiffin nodded, even though he didn't understand what she meant; but he knew sometimes it was best not to say anything at all.

"Boa, I have to ask you something," he said. He wished he didn't have to do this to her, but if he didn't, things could get a lot worse.

"I understand."

"Boa, are you engaged to Lord Carrion? Now, don't speak, let me finish," he said, stopping Boa from answering in haste. "Whatever you say, I promise I will not make a judgement upon, I just need to know."

Boa looked down at the ground. There were tears in her eyes, and Quiffin couldn't be sure whether they had been caused by upset or the cold wind. Boa's long hesitation in answering made him worry, if the answer was 'yes' he didn't know what he was going to do. It would explain a lot, but he prayed she would say no.

Boa shook her head.

"He hasn't asked me to marry him," she said. She saw the relief in her brother's eyes, it was so strong that he was unable to hide it. "I'm not engaged," she confirmed.

"Well I can't pretend to be disappointed. You do realise that every moment you stay here, the rumours that you are get stronger? It wont be long before mother and father hear about them, and they will not be able to ignore it. The only reason you haven't become a huge scandal already is because I'm here with you."

"Quiffin, I know you think I'm stupid. But I know all of this. It may have taken me a long time to open my eyes, but now I'm frightened. How do I ever go home now?" Boa asked.

She cross her arms across her chest and hugged herself against the wind, searching for comfort. She kept looking around for spies, and she was certain that they were being watched by something, if not someone.

"What do you mean frightened? Boa if you want to go home, I'll take you home right now!" Quiffin said earnestly. Boa had to know that she wasn't trapped here. This was what he had been fearing ever since she had got here, that Midnight would work on her mind until she became a prisoner.

"You're right about an engagement, Lord Carrion will ask me. I've been acting wrongly, except I didn't realise it at the time. I know now that I should have just been consistent from the start, but I was frightened of angering him. It might sound crazy, but I like the way he treats me, it makes me feel nice."

"But that isn't enough," Quiffin said.

Boa shook her head.

"No, it's not enough to stay with someone. The truth is, I'm scared of him. I'm scared to leave because I don't know what he'll do!" Boa said.

She shuddered. All of these thoughts that she had kept buried deep in her mind for so long, and she felt lighter for speaking them.

Quiffin stood in silence thinking. Boa was right to be scared of Carrion, he wasn't someone _he_ would trust, and whilst he was glad Boa wasn't going to be staying here when he returned home, he feared the repercussions of her leaving.

"Boa this has been going on too long for you to expect to be forgiven," Quiffin said reasonably. "But we need to leave soon. You need to make an excuse, one that he'll believe. You'll have to continue like you have been so that he lets you go home."

Boa looked at him with a panicked look in her eyes. Now she had spilled her secrets, she didn't think she could fool herself or anyone else anymore.

"Quiffin, I'm becoming someone I don't like," she said looking at the ground. "I just want to go home."

"We will, we'll go home soon. I'll arrange our journey immediately."

The strange world Boa had been spinning for herself since she had arrived in Midnight was crashing down. Quiffin could see now how her conflicting actions had been reasoned. With one hand she pulled Carrion closer, and with the other she was pushing him away, trying to keep herself safe in a balance-- but it wasn't working anymore.

It was time for decisions, and while Boa had spoken truthfully to him in this moment, Quiffin was concerned that she might not be ready to make a clean break of her friendship with Lord Carrion. The game was becoming normal to her, and a part of her life. If she stayed she might forget that she was only playing until it was too late.

**AN:** No, I haven't forgotten about the letter!! It's just that things that need to be gotten out of the way first. The letter is not a throw-away side plot, so please don't feel cheated if you really wanted to know what it said, you will soon,

Thank you to enigmatic poet, spirochick39, Chorus girl 24601, and delavega for reviewing!!


	19. Engagement

**A/N:** So very near the end now, so hopefully, some action! Hope you all like.

**Engagement**

The theatre passed in a blurr, there was nothing remarkable about the event that could hold Boa's attention. Her mind was too busy running over the conversation she had had with Quiffin, to think about anything else.

To excuse herself, Boa had feigned a headache, touching her hand to her forehead every now and then. Carrion found that no matter how he tried to engage her in a conversation, Boa would slip away into silence once more. Clearly distracted, Boa couldn't wait to return to the tower.

She politely turned down Carrion's offer of seeing more of the town, even though a few days ago this would have seemed appealing. Suddenly, she realised what had taken her to Midnight in the first place, wasn't going to be what sent her home. She realised how stupid she had been to think she could solve all her problems herself. She had just made an even bigger mess for herself, and nothing at all had been resolved. She hoped that Quiffin was being speedy in arranging their passage home, as she was beginning to think Carrion would discover something was amiss.

Sitting beside him in the carriage had never felt so confined, she was afraid to even move in case he said something to her. She breathed steadily, forcing air in and out of her lungs, afraid that she would forget to breathe if she did not.

Carrion didn't seem to notice her discomfort, and barely looked at her at all. But Boa couldn't shake the feeling that somehow he knew what was in her mind. It was an anxious thought that plagued her journey.

Back at the tower, and Boa forced herself to stay in the carriage until the door was opened for her. The footman then escorted her up the steps, and left her by the door. For a brief moment Boa was all alone, Carrion had stayed behind with the carriage to speak to the driver. Boa hesitated, she didn't want to seem too keen to leave him, she waited for him too look over and tell her to go inside. But there seemed to be a problem, and Carrion's attention was fixed with the carriage and it's animals.

Boa turned her back on them all, and walked into the warm. Instantly she was greeted by servants, waiting for her orders. Boa handed her shawl to one of the maids and walked away from them all. The maid followed Boa to her room and inside, put the shawl on a chair, and then left.

Boa waited until the girl's footsteps were distant, before she spoke.

"Aelda, help me change."

"So, you're going?" Aelda asked as she unzipped the back of Boa's dress. "If you're caught you will not be able to explain this away."

Boa stepped out of her dress and handed it over. She pulled on her trousers, and buttoned them up.

"Then lets hope I'm not caught," Boa said flippantly as she fastened the buttons on her shirt. "I'll need a coat," she remarked as she looked at herself. "And I should wear my boots."

Aelda found the items requested in silence. It wasn't her place to say what the Princess should do, and she had done all the advising she could. She wished that Prince Quiffin had read the letter, then maybe he would have put a stop to this. But he hadn't, and Boa seemed determined to go.

"Must you go?" Aelda asked desperately, it was her last chance to dissuade her.

Boa nodded whilst looking at her reflection.

"We have a lot to talk about. If I don't go, I may never have an other opportunity."

Aelda nodded. If her Princess became Queen of Midnight, she'd never see Finnegan Hobb again.

Boa stepped out into the garden with a pounding heart. She looked around for any spies, but couldn't seem to see clearly. Her heart was dictating her every action, and her heart was telling her to be reckless.

Once out in the darkness, Boa felt vulnerable. She had come alone, as instructed, and was risking everything on this letter being a true one. If Finnegan didn't show, she didn't know what she would do. A false letter may have come from any quarter, from someone that didn't like the fact that she was here.

She shuddered. This thought had only just occurred to her, and she hadn't had the opportunity to weigh it up. But it was too late now. She had to keep going, keep walking until she found the meeting place, there was no option of going back.

The grove was empty. No sign of Finnegan, no sign of anybody. Boa stood alone wondering whether she was in the right place at all, when to her right she heard someone call her name.

"Finnegan?" she whispered.

"Yes, it's me," he replied.

Boa looked around. She could still see no one.

"Why are you hiding?" she asked.

"I can't be seen, it's too dangerous. For you, more than it is for me."

Boa listened to the wind carry his voice away. They were in danger, but more danger hardly mattered.

"Come out, I don't care what the consequences are, we have to speak to each other properly," Boa said.

There was tense moment where Boa feared he had left her, refusing to show himself and put her in more danger. But then there he was, walking towards her, the light of the stars brightening his image.

Boa stared at him. She found she had no words to say. A tear began to form in her eye, when she remembered how happy they had been together in the sun, before this had ever happened.

"Oh Boa," he said sadly.

Boa's tears fell down her cheeks, released by his pity. He should have been angry, she could have dealt with that, but pity was more than she could take.

"Please don't look at me," Boa said turning her head. "I have acted so wrong to you."

He took a step forward towards her, but Boa shook her head.

"You were right, this place is changing me. I don't know who I am anymore. I just do what he tells me, and I'm scared that I'll never see my home again."

This time Finnegan ignored her protests, and brought her into his arms. Her tears didn't come in sobs, just sad streams of sorrow. She felt weak in his arms, as if all the fight had gone from her body, and she was resigned to her fate as Queen of Midnight.

"Boa it doesn't matter what has happened. Just come home with me. I love you, I always have. I know you have a good heart, even though you have been lead astray here. Come back with me, don't stay here. Marry me instead, you know that I love you."

Boa looked up at his worried face. So much love she saw there, and wondered why any of it fell on her. She deserved none of his love, but she loved him for his consistency. Yes he loved her. He was not exciting, or mysterious, but he was a kind man, who was forgiving.

"Why couldn't you have asked me before?" Boa asked. "Before I ruined myself. Before he ever touched me. Why now? Why, couldn't you have asked me when I was pure?"

"Boa, no one is ever 'pure'. I would be a fool indeed if I expected you to be. I have faults too, many, and if you marry me then they'll probably drive you mad! But don't you want to find out?"

Boa nodded.

"I want to go home."

"I will take you back to your father…" Finnegan said pulling away. Boa shook her head and pulled him back.

"No, I want to marry you, then I'll be home."

Boa smiled at his shocked face. Her heart felt light once more, and her head dizzy. For a moment she felt strong once more. No longer a prisoner. She could make her own choices, and she had chosen.

"Oh!" he said kissing her forehead. "Boa you won't regret it! Let's go now, just you and me."

"No, I cant," she said suddenly. "Tomorrow, tomorrow I will meet you, and we will go."

It took some time to persuade Finnegan to leave her in the tower, but Boa was felt there was still something she needed to do. Something needed to be said to Lord Carrion, some leave must be taken. Whilst they hardly saw eye to eye, he had welcomed her into his home, and deserved an explanation of some kind.

Boa watched Finnegan leave. She felt a smile on her face, one that she couldn't wipe away. Happily she turned to walk back to the tower, but as her eyes turned to the path, her blood seemed to stop in her veins, and she turned ice cold.

Carrion was staring at her with what looked like murder in his eyes. She had never been scared of Lord Carrion before, and the fear was overwhelming.

Boa felt the silence would burn her ears, even the wind had stopped to listen. Very ominously, in voice that seemed to flood over her skin with it's venom, Carrion whispered: Congratulations.


	20. The Light’s go Out

A/N: Thank you to Chorus girl 24601 and Thunderstorm101 for reviewing! Wow, all the tension in this chapter, I'm exhausted!

**The Light's go Out**

Boa stared at him stunned. Congratulations? He had heard it all? But her answer she could see on his face; he seen everything. Every word of hate she had ever spoken about him, there it was in the back of his eyes. Every terrible sentence, every horrible thought, it was there for her to see. What had she done to him? Had she been the cause of that glint of pain.

"You read my diary," she said finally. He knew everything because of her. She had done all of this. Not content with just thinking it, she had committed her fears to paper. He had read her every thought, her every wish.

"Clever girl."

She felt a flash of anger, that gave her the strength to stand before him and she faced his darkened eyes with violated ones of her own.

"How dare you!" she exclaimed. "Finnegan!" she called into the darkness. "Finnegan!"

Carrion smirked.

"He's gone. He couldn't wait to leave. He wont ever becoming back either."

Boa's eyes widened. What had happened to Finnegan? If something had happened, she knew she would have been the cause of it. Torn between looking for Finnegan and seeing their argument to the very bitter end, Boa stood frozen in the darkness.

"What do you mean, 'won't be coming back'? Yes he will, he's coming back for me, and we are going to be married."

"Hobb wont be coming back, not when you are my Queen!"

Boa's face contorted into questioning, but she didn't have the chance to ask, as Carrion had rushed at her before she could react.

She screamed, and barely had time to knock one of his hands away before he pushed her over onto the grass. She screamed again as her bones made contact with the hard earth, and a jarring pain shot from her hip up her back and into her arm. Desperately she tried to fend him away from her, each lost in the struggle. The pain was easing, but as it left, panic began to flood in. By not knowing what he was going to do, Boa began to cry again.

"Get off me!" she whimpered. "Please don't!"

There was questioning the fact that he was stronger of the two, and she was completely at his mercy. His whim was her torture, there was nothing she could do to stop him. This crushing realisation caused her to stop fighting, and she surrendered this round.

Carrion felt her give up, her hands stopped pushing against him, her legs stopped moving, and her eyes than had been so filled with anger and hate, closed, trapping their tears inside. He waited, but she lay unmoving.

"Do you think you are going to die?" he asked.

No response. He pushed his weight back off of her, and for a brief moment wondered whether he had done her any damage. But the steady rising and falling of her chest told him otherwise, she's stopped fighting of her own accord.

"Do you think I would kill you?" he tried again, looking down on her.

Boa opened her eyes, and this time the tears were gone. Her eyes had a hard look to them, as she stared up at him.

"I think you're capable of anything," Boa said, her voice steadied by the tone of disgust. "I don't think anyone would stop you."

Her face turned away from him. His face had looked foreign to her; she could have been staring at a demon, and she would've not noticed. She felt her heart harden against him, and any feelings she had once had for him, sunk away until they were nothing.

"When the rose-tint disappears Christopher, all we'd ever be is King and Queen lying in the mud. Just like the dirt clings to us now. A reign that begins in pain will end the same way."

"Maybe pain is all you deserve," he said removing to lye on the ground beside her.

Boa lay in wait. Was he really letting her go? What had she said that could have warranted her freedom? Her words had been vicious and biting, and had not been spoken in any regard for his feelings.

Carrion was staring at the sky now, and seemed to have forgotten her for the moment. Boa carefully moved away from him, a little at a time.

"In the dirt," Carrion muttered. "In the dark."

But the voice didn't seem to come from him, it sounded like a voice from the past. Her words had struck something within him, a bad memory maybe? Another scathing comment? Boa sat up slowly, both eyes on him in case he struck out at her again. But he remained unmoving, staring with a emptiness in his eye.

Standing above him, looking down, Boa knew he had given her power over him now. He was helpless on the floor, under her boot if she so wished. She matched his stare, waiting until he looked at her.

As soon as he caught her eye, his face changed again. Boa had to force herself to remain where she was, when her whole body felt repulsed. There was something evil looking at her from his eyes.

"You will regret this Boa," he warned.

Boa felt her heart race. He wasn't empty in this threat, he would make her life unhappy in anyway he could. She saw his hand around her throat in her years to come, he'd keep her afraid of him forever. But at least she would be free and afraid, not trapped in a dark room somewhere.

"I will be happy," Boa said, as confidently as she could manage.

"Happy marrying a man you don't love? Too afraid to take the uncertain

road, so you're content to settle with safe?"

"Why would I choose a life of danger?" Boa asked, a confused frown on her face.

Carrion sneered at her, and looked back at the stars.

"Because, it leads to the greater rewards," he said returning his gaze to her face once more, this time his eyes were earnest.

Boa opened her mouth to protest, but found she had nothing to say. In her heart she felt he was right. Was she really just settling because she was afraid? She tried to argue herself back into surety, but a doubt had been cast. She looked away so that he wouldn't see the confusion on her face.

"You were my light Boa," he said calling her attention back to him. "You could be the light to my hour, if only you were brave enough. Look at the good you could do here."

He was right, she wasn't brave. If she really cared about the suffering children in the dark hours, like she proclaimed to, she'd stay here, and sacrifice her life to bring them hope. But she wasn't brave. Her blood went cold at the thought of ending her days here, with the evil inside of Carrion as her only companion.

"I don't have to listen to this," she decided, stepping away from him. "I'm leaving you now, and I'm taking that book back with me."

Carrion was on his feet so quickly and blocking her path, before Boa had even realised he'd moved. In his eyes again there was the warning of the temper that overpowered her before.

"What book?" he asked.

"The book you took, the one from my library," Boa told him, trying not to stammer even though she felt afraid once more. "The one you shouldn't have. I want it back."

They stood facing each other, but Boa wouldn't run away from this.

"As you wish," he said eventually, with the greatest control over the anger in his voice.

The book belonged to her, and she wouldn't let him keep it. She followed as he led the way back to the tower.

"The diary you can keep, and I hope you enjoy it," she said maliciously as they walked. The silence was oppressive, and she preferred to be arguing that thinking.

"Your diary does not interest me," Carrion replied not looking at her.

Boa laughed a harsh laugh, that was forced to sound hurtful.

"Don't lie to me, I know you'll want to read what I've written about you. What do you expect to find? Entries of hate? Well, I'm sorry, but you'll be disappointed. I didn't hate you until today!"

That was a lie, there were many entries of bad feeling, but she was hoping he would never look inside the pages. Or if he did, she wouldn't be there to see the consequences.

Carrion stopped mid-step, and Boa thought she might have gone too far. She waited for the backlash, but there was none. And after all, was there anything more they could attack each other with? If their souls could be seen, she thought they would be black and blue by now; and if Carrion's soul could be seen, it might even have begun the evening already broken.

There were no more words from Carrion, just silence. Not another word was uttered until they reached the library, and even then, words were scarce. Boa followed him inside, only to have a book thrown at her. The heavy pages hit her chest and bruised her, and as a result she caught it clumsily.

"Happy now?" he asked walking to the fire.

Boa read the cover. It was book about dragons, and other harmful creatures. She looked up at him appalled.

"Why would you steal such a book? What would you want which such knowledge?"

Maybe she didn't really want that question answered, but she had asked it nonetheless. Carrion reached into his pocket and pulled out her diary. He held it in his hand thoughtfully.

"My grandmother requested it, but I shall not fear her anger when she discovers it's missing… if you truly want it back."

Boa hugged the book to her. If that old witch wanted the book, then Boa knew she had to take it home and keep it safe.

"I do," she confirmed.

"Then I accept your trade," Carrion said looking at her diary.

Boa watched him throw her diary into the flames of the fire. All connection between them seemed to burn to dust in that moment, and they were just strangers once more. Boa bowed her head, and opened the door. The click of the door turned Carrion's gaze back to her.

"I told you, you were my light Boa," he said. "But light's can go out."

The fire in the grate sputtered and died at his words, and startled, Boa left the room quickly. The door shut heavily behind her, leaving Carrion in the lonely dark.


	21. This game of mine, hasn’t begun

**This game of mine, hasn't begun.**

Returning home wasn't the escape Boa had hoped it would be. She desperately wanted to spend the journey alone, sitting and thinking, but neither her brother or Finnegan would allow her a moment of solitude.

She wondered whether they thought she might change her mind if left alone. If maybe, she'd jump the side of the boat and swim back to Midnight. But whatever they thought, they didn't consider her feelings for a moment. They were taking her home, and they were going to make sure she got there, whether she really wanted to go or not.

Boa hugged her canvas bag to her chest. Inside she had put the only items she cared about. Luggage often got lost on journey's, but this bag wasn't to go out of her sight. Inside was the book Carrion had stolen, some gifts she had been given by the inhabitants of Midnight, and a selection of scattered boiled sweets.

The sky was becoming lighter overhead, and soon the colours began to appear again. As she saw the sun stretching out over the sky, Boa felt nervous. How was she ever going to explain all her actions to her parents? She prayed that what had happened in Midnight, had stayed there, and that they had not heard news of her supposed 'engagement' to Lord Carrion. Not only that, but she couldn't bare to think that her father had thought about her disgraceful actions; and what must he think of her now?

"Boa?" Quiffin asked as he sat beside her. "Are you Ok?"

Boa stared out into the sea. With every roll of the boat, she was nearer her home. She shrugged.

"I'm fine," she said quietly.

"Hungry?"

"No," Boa replied still staring into the water.

She could feel Quiffin wanted to ask her something, he was working up the courage, but she still wouldn't look at him.

"You're not worried that he'll come after you, are you?"

Boa closed her eyes. What was she supposed to say? Yes, that thought did worry her, but she didn't think it was very likely. Not after what she had said to him. At least, she didn't expect him anytime soon.

"No," she said.

She looked at Quiffin. Clearly he was worried, but, Boa thought, probably only for himself. Home had seemed like the safest option when they were in the dark of Midnight, but it didn't seem so far away anymore. If they could sail home, Carrion could certainly sail after them, and who could say that he wasn't already on their tail?

"At least, not now," Boa added before looking away again. "No, he won't follow me today."

"That's a very ominous thought Boa," he said. He wondered whether Boa could hear the fear in his voice.

He knew they had been right to leave when they had. Things could have gotten even worse, and Boa might have never escaped. But what had they created by leaving? It felt to Quiffin that he and Finnegan both, had just begun a war.

"I wish you had never gone to Midnight," Quiffin said sorrowfully as he stood. "This has not ended well."

"No," Boa said calling his attention back before he walked away. "It hasn't even begun."

* * *

"She's been in her room for three days now, is there something wrong?"

Quiffin tried hard not to lie to his mother, but he knew the truth would be too complicated to tell. It was better for Boa if they didn't know the circumstances of her coming away, although he hoped that Boa would tell them all, and lift this cloud of uncertainty.

"She's tired mother," he said. "It's been a long journey."

His mother frowned, and looked towards the door as if she might go and check on her daughter, for the twentieth time that day.

"Well, if you're sure that's all…"

Quiffin didn't blame her for being worried. Boa's behaviour since her return, was not the same as before she had left. She had shown no interest in her charity work, and unfortunately all the problems she had been trying to solve on her own, ended up falling to her father after all.

Boa knew this must have happened by now, the conference had been called, and she had not attended. She had no way of knowing whether Carrion had joined the meeting, but she thought it more than likely he'd have sent someone to sit in for him.

She wouldn't admit to herself what was causing her to confine herself to her room. She heard others say, maybe it was the boredom of not having someone entertain her all day long, or maybe it really was just exhaustion? But whatever it was, Boa felt safer inside her room, and away from people.

To his surprise, Boa opened her door to Quiffin, and let him in. She looked down the hallway, and satisfied that there was no one listening outside, shut the door. Quiffin sat himself down at her dresser.

"Why are you hiding in here?" he asked.

Boa tried to make herself busy, by moving items about on her shelves, but she couldn't avoid answering the questioning in the end.

"I'm waiting for Finnegan to come back."

"You don't need to wait in here. Why don't you tell mother that you are engaged? You know she'd be please, then she could stop worrying about you. They're not angry at you, you know," Quiffin said trying to make his sister look at him. "I don't think many of the papers made it this far."

He caught the look of relief on Boa's face, and she seemed to relax for a moment.

"I'm not frightened of that," Boa said sitting on the edge of her bed. "I'm scared Lord Carrion will be coming after me. He's had time now to think about it."

She had said it, the reason she was hiding. Quiffin looked away.

"You should tell father soon."

Boa shook her head.

"No, when Finnegan comes back, he'll ask for father's permission, and there will be no need to mention Christopher again. Once I'm known to be engaged, I shall be safe."

Quiffin sat thinking. Although he was glad that Boa was home, he couldn't help but think that she was still trapped. Although this was the engagement he wanted for his sister, he had to wonder whether she was ready for one at all?

"Boa, you're not marrying Finnegan just to escape Carrion are you?" he saw a strange look pass over Boa's face that he couldn't recognise. "Because he's a good man, and deserves better than that."

Boa frowned at him harshly.

"Leave me alone," she commanded.

Quiffin thought it best to leave as instructed, after all, he hadn't really wanted to hear the answer to that question anyway. He left his sister to her created prison, knowing that there was nothing he could do.

Boa stared at the closed door for a long time once he had gone. There were many reasons to remain in her room. The most forward, being her fears, made even more threatening by her final meeting with Carrion's grandmother.

Mater Motley had been waiting for her to leave the tower. There was nothing that happened in Midnight that that woman did not know about, she had her spies everywhere.

Just as Boa thought she had escaped the hour, there was one last obstacle in her way. In the brief moment that she allowed herself to draw breath, she had been attacked.

"_I always knew you were nothing but some cheap slut. I knew it from the first time I lay eyes on you," Motley said cuttingly. "Got what you came for then?"_

_Boa had faltered. Fighting with Carrion was one thing, but the grandmother was something else entirely. She knew she wouldn't win, and her nerves were already strained to the limit. _

_"Yes, actually," Boa replied, feeling her voice shake. "I have. I am taking this book home with me."_

_Mater Motley sneered, which gave Boa the impression that the book had already served it's purpose. _

_Boa hugged the book close to her and began walking._

_"Out of my way," she said as forcefully as she could manage. _

_She caught the look on Mater Motley's face as she went by, and was glad that she'd never have to look at her again. _

_"You would never have been good enough for this hour."_

_That had hurt. Boa wouldn't have thought it would have, but to be told she wasn't good enough to be loved, made the tears start falling down her cheeks again. _

_"That is a conversation you need to have with your grandson," she said over her shoulder, not letting Motley see her tears._

_"I certainly shall." _


	22. Silenced

**A/N: **Thank you reviewers, you keep on making my day! I'm so close to finishing this fic now, huzzah! It sure will be an achievement, 22 chapters, gee, by poor poor brain.

**Chapter Twenty Two -- Silenced**

Boa's engagement had been announced as soon as Finnegan had returned. It had been greeted with mixed reception. Some who had been acquainted with her stay in Midnight had been expecting a different outcome to the visit, but in general it was considered happy news.

Whilst the Day hours celebrated, there were two that held their breath. They had expected to have heard something from Midnight by now, and the silence was increasing their worry. Boa refused to believe that Lord Carrion would leave things how they were. For better or worse, they were destined to meet again, the world was too small for them to avoid each other forever.

Desperately she wanted it all over so that she could move on with her life, but as the days passed, there was still no news.

Now, standing in front of the mirror, staring at herself in her bright white dress, Boa felt her heart heavy and sad. Everyone around her was full of joy at the prospect of her wedding, and yet Boa felt she couldn't join in with their laughter.

The dressmakers kept cooing at her, making her turn this way and that, admiring her from every angle. Boa continued to stare at herself as they pinned the white material into place. The smile on her face hurt from being forced, and her laughter sounded hollow even to her own ears. Only her eyes betrayed her anxious state, in which she had no confident but her brother.

"Princess," someone said gently, calling her away from the refection of herself. "Your father is waiting to see you."

Boa frowned for a second. She had thought he was meeting with some officials this morning, but supposed she must have muddled her information in her nervousness.

"Thank you," she said stepping down from her stool. "I had better change first. I won't be long."

The maid who had brought the news curtsied.

"The King is waiting the library your highness," she said bowing her head, and then respectfully leaving the room.

The library brought back memories she had tried to forget. She had not gone there since she had returned home, even though she knew she still needed to return the book. She had the great fear that she might find Lord Carrion sitting alone, haunting the room like a spirit at unrest.

Except, when she finally arrived at the library, there was no spectre to greet her, only her father with a concerned look on his face.

"Close the door Boa," he said. His normally jolly voice, sounding weary.

It seemed she was not the only one who had been worrying about something.

"I thought you were in a meeting?" Boa said doing as she was told, by shutting the door.

King Klaus beckoned her into the room.

"I was. I hurried back because… I was worried about something that has happened in Midnight."

Boa felt a bolt of terror run through her. What had happened? Was their an army approaching them? Were they now under attack? No, she thought. If that was the case, then her father wouldn't be stood here talking to her about it, he be out raising his own army, or forcing peace talks.

Had Lord Carrion said something about her? Was he protesting her marriage to Finnegan? Boa's face turned so pale that she felt unwell. Dizzy with fear, Boa sought the nearest chair and surrendered herself to it's support.

She looked at her father with wide fearing eyes. What doom was to befall her now? What more could be done to make her suffer? What was supposed to be the most happiest time of her life, seemed to be nothing but one unending nightmare.

"Boa, are you ill?" King Klaus asked. His thoughts of Midnight forgotten at the sight of his fear-ridden daughter.

Boa shook her head.

"Please tell me what has happened in Midnight," she begged, her voice sounding breathless.

King Klaus brought another chair to the side of her, sat, and studied her face.

"Did something happen during your stay that you haven't told me?" he asked seriously.

Boa looked at the floor. She should tell him everything, but she felt deep shame at her actions, and couldn't bring herself to speak about it to her father. But there was something he should know, it was his right to know, as a father and King.

"Lord Carrion asked me to marry him. But I refused him, and I came home," she said, unable to meet his eye as she spoke. "Please don't be angry, I didn't want it to happen. I mean… I didn't seek it."

She heard him sigh. It was if with that one sound he conveyed all his fears, suspicions and relief. Boa felt tears beginning at the corners of her eyes. She had fought so hard to forget Carrion, and yet she could not escape him. She couldn't bear to hear harsh words from her father on the subject, and began to cry in fear of them.

The sight of his daughter's tears prompted Klaus to speak. He sighed once more and placed a hand on Boa's shoulder.

"I am not angry. Who you are to marry was always to be your choice. But I feared for this the moment I learned where you had gone, and yet when I heard no news, I just assumed that my reservations had been unfounded. I wish you had told me sooner."

Boa wiped her tears away, trying to hold back those that were still threatening to fall. she wished it also.

"But this does not explain what has happened," Klaus said standing and walking as if thinking intently.

"What _has_ happened?" Boa sniffed.

"Nobody knows," he said cryptically. "I had hoped that _you_ could tell _me_."

Boa shook her head.

"Is it something bad?" she asked.

"I believe it's something terrible," he said. "No ambassador from the Night hours will talk to us of it. They all feign that they know nothing, but we can all see the terror in their faces."

Knowing that he had said too much, and had most likely alarmed Boa more that he had intended to do, King Klaus ended their conversation abruptly, by dismissing the news as probably nothing, and then telling Boa that she had better return to her dress-fitting.

Boa had left the room reluctantly, but soon found herself seeking her brother to reassure her about this 'terrible' occurrence that had happened in Midnight.

"It's him!" she shouted finding both Quiffin and Finnegan in the gardens.

Quiffin had been detaining some pretty maid in probably inappropriate conversation, whilst Finnegan was looking decisively bored. As soon as they were alarmed by Boa's outburst the maid was sent on her way.

"Who's him?" Quffin asked trying to quiet her tone by making his hushed.

"Lord Carrion. Something happened in Midnight, and father won't tell me what it is! He's pretending that he doesn't know, but it's something horrible, I know it is!"

"Boa, calm down," Quiffin said pulling Boa to the safety and the seclusion of the shade of a large tree. They stood in it's shadow like three conspirators. "What are you talking about?"

He looked at Finnegan in such a way as to remind Boa of who's company she was in. She had not voiced any fears to Finnegan so far, and had been in a mind never to do so. Except that all seemed forgotten now.

"I don't care. He's going to do something. I know it! He's going to ruin my wedding. He'll tell falsehoods! He'll say I'm really engaged to him! That I promised him my hand or something. Quiffin, you have to find out what has happened!"

Boa turned abruptly, and wrapped her arms around Finnegan, putting her face to his chest to hide herself. She could feel herself shaking, and had no doubt that Finngan could feel it also.

"I'm so scared," she whispered. "I don't ever want to go back. I want to stay with you!"

Finnegan held her silently. His accusing gaze fell on Quiffin.

"I am sorry I didn't tell you. I just thought… I didn't know… I didn't know she was so scared," Quiffin defended.

Finngan's anger broke finally. There was only so much of being shut out that he could take. Boa had promised to marry him, and yet he felt that she was always just out of his reach. No he knew why, it was her fears that were keeping her distant. She wasn't happy at the prospect of their wedding as she should be, she was afraid it might never happen.

"You didn't know? Look at her!" he shouted.

The sound of his harsh voice made Boa cry once more. She had never heard him raise his voice like this before, and had wondered whether it was even a part of his nature. Now she saw that he had his passions just like them all, and realised that his anger might now turn on her. After all, she had kept her fears a secret from him also.

"I know," Quiffin said regretfully. "I shall find out what it is that has happened. I swear it."

Finnegan shook his head.

"Just go," he said.

Quiffin bowed his head, and nodded. This was not his place anymore. It was no longer his responsibility to protect his sister, and he accepted that, yes, he must be the one to leave.

"Still, he haunts us," Finnegan said. "You will never truly be mine."

Boa looked up, and he pushed her back to arms length.

"You never saw what happened. I shouted for you, but you had gone! I tried so hard to tell you afterwards, but I just never could. He did ask me to marry him. He almost forced me to stay. But I refused, and I escaped, and he wont forgive me!" Boa confessed. "I've been waiting ever since for something to happen. I cant believe that he will let us be happy. I'm so frightened that something will happen to stop us being married that…I just cannot bear it!"

Finnegan let her go.

"Maybe your fears are simple Boa. Maybe you feel this way because you do not wish to be married at all?"

"No, that's not it!" Boa insisted. She felt a panic. Whatever might happen in her world, she wanted his marriage. Even if it was mixed up in confusion and fears, she knew deep down that this was what she wanted.

"We are engaged Boa, the Abarat knows it. There is nothing Lord Carrion or anyone can do about it. I want to marry you Boa, I love you. Do you still want to marry me?"

Boa didn't answer right away. Instead she thought. Slowly she smiled.

"I love you, and I want to marry you, yes," she said. "And you're right, nothing can ruin that."

She smiled. She felt a weight had been lifted from her, and when he kissed her, there might not have been the danger that she had felt when with Lord Carrion, but she did feel loved.

* * *

Later, when dressing for bed, Boa heard a knock at her door. Curiously she opened it to find her brother waiting outside. 

"What are…?" she asked, but he silenced her with his index finger to his mouth.

"Father has told me all," he said.

Boa noticed his face. It was pale and clammy.

"There is nothing for you to worry about Boa. He is not coming for you. He has been silenced."

Boa frowned.

"What do you mean, 'silenced'?" she asked.

Quiffin shook his head.

"That's what she's calling it."

"Who?" Boa asked feeling increasingly confused.

"Motley," Quiffin replied.

Boa realised that he was shaking and begged him to come in and sit down. But fearing that might tell her too much, Quiffin refused. Boa need not know, and indeed might never have to know what had happened. He urged her to forget her fears, and sleep well, before leaving her to her confusion and wonderings.


	23. Powers of Magic

**A/N: Marumae, **I hope this chapter was what you were looking for!

**Chapter Twenty Three -- Powers of Magic**

Boa tilted her face to the sun, and looked at the sky streaked with colours of the dusk. The birds had stopped singing, but the atmosphere was still peaceful, even if it was, unnaturally quiet. Picking up her skirt so that it wouldn't get caught under her boots, Boa called for her father's dog and began walking through the field.

She had walked further today than she normally did, reaching the end of the palace gardens and then continuing into the wheat field. The crop had been harvested the week before; so all that was left were the prickly stumps of wheat ears, which reached out to scratch her legs.

She gazed around at the empty expanse of the field, watching the dog chase bugs through the grass, until she realised that she was no longer standing there alone. Someone had followed her, and without even turning around, she felt she knew who it was.

So he was here at last. Her fears hadn't been unfounded, she knew he would come, and here he was. She looked at his shadow falling just short of hers and knew that he was waiting for her to look around.

As she looked, Boa wondered if she had fallen into some sort of nightmare. The man who stood before her barely held any remembrance to the Christopher Carrion that she knew, and she diverted her eyes in shock.

His hair had been completely shorn off, and his eyes were circled with dark sorrow. Any colour that had once been a part of his skin, had been drained, until it was nothing but ashen grey. His face looked sunken and skeletal, and Boa could barely bring herself to look, as he presented himself before her as a vision of horror.

"The light save us," Boa whispered; an old phrase for warding off evil.

He walked towards her, and Boa stared at his face.

"They would not tell me what happened," she said taking a step backwards.

Carrion seemed uninterested in what she had to say, and even his demeanour had changed. He no longer looked for her approval, just stared at her with an eerie stillness. When he looked at her, Boa knew there was no longer any emotion there for her. The desire he had once held for her had gone.

Slowly, he reached into his coat pocket and brought out a handkerchief, and dabbed at his bloody lips.

"I was punished for my love of you," he said.

Boa looked away sickened. His lips were so mangled that they barely had any form, and when he spoke, she saw that his mouth was full of blood. Her stomach twisted in revulsion.

"What do you mean?"

Carrion grinned, his blood stained teeth bared at her.

"I shall show you," he said, his disturbed grin still affixed to his face.

One moment Boa was stood looking at him, the next she was sat on a cold floor with Mater Motley leaning over her. Her old face was manic, her grey eyes wide, wild and cold. She was shouting, loud and close to Boa's face, but Boa's mind was too muddled to know what she was saying. Boa felt as if she was awaking from a very deep sleep, in which she had had no control over.

As she woke, she realised that she was not the one on the ground, but a spectator. Carrion was on the floor, his arms tied behind him, and restrained against the wall with an iron bar. Motley was shouting at him, and now no longer inside Carrion's mind she could hear the words clearly.

"Love!" Motley screamed with venom.

Boa flinched. She saw something glitter in Motley's hand, and realised instinctively that it was something sharp. For a second she was seeing through Carrion's eyes again, and she recognised it as a needle.

Boa's eyes widened as it was brought towards her, and Motley grabbed her face roughly. Her head span, the drugged sleep was slow to leave her, but the pain was real as the sharp point touched her top lip.

"No!" Boa screamed, fighting against what was happening to her.

With a twist of her head, she was back outside again, a spectator looking over Motley's shoulder. She screwed her eyes tight shut. She didn't want to see what was happening, but the events continued whether she was watching or not.

The needle was forced down through Carrion's top lip, and whilst his mind was still numbed by the poison, his body was not. He cried out involuntarily, but Motley continued to shout and rave, drowning out any resistant that he made.

"Love? I cannot abide the word! Sickening, diseased, filled with maggots, that's what love is!"

Motley pulled hard on the thread, the rough yarn ripping through his bruised and swelling flesh. She was working fast, the needling digging in and pulling out, as easily as if she was sewing but a piece of cotton.

Boa screamed, there was blood everywhere, it was running down Carrion's chin, and covering Mater Motley's hands. Boa tried to cover her ears against all the pain, but even her imagination showed her images of brutality.

"Stop it!" she cried, trying to push Motley aside. Boa's hands went straight through her, and she almost fell forwards.

Motley turned her face towards Boa, her actions frozen in time.

"She was a poison," she said looking straight at Boa. "She should die."

Boa stood frozen with fear. Who was Motley speaking to? Was it Carrion, or could she really see her?

Motley's head snapped back to her torture, and Boa's presence seemed unsubstantial again.

"I will never hear such foul words again!"

Boa could see that Carrion was losing consciousness, and wished it upon him. It would be a blessing in such circumstances, but she knew Motley would prevent it. The Lord Carrion on the ground closed his eyes, but when he opened them he was looking straight at her. The shock sent Boa reeling back to the present, where she was looking into his eyes once more.

Boa stumbled back alarmed.

"What did you just do to me?" she demanded holding her head, hands clutched in her hair by her ears.

"She left me there but a day, but it was enough…"

Boa retreated backwards from him, shaking her head and staring wildly. Her mind couldn't comprehend what had just happened to her, and her body was slowly going into shock. She began shaking.

"You get away from me!" she warned.

"Look what you've done to me," he said in a harsh voice. "And you want to punish me further!"

"I didn't do this to you!" Boa screamed hysterically. "You can't blame this on me!"

"You did this Boa!" he shouted.

Boa saw him move his hand, and that was enough to send her running. Her father's dog began to bark, and chased after her, not realising that she wasn't playing a game.

Boa wiped the tears from her eyes as she ran, the dog snapping at her playfully, catching hold of her skirt every now and then. She heard Carrion calling after her once more, he sounded distant.

She turned to look at him one last time, and abruptly stopped when she realised that he'd gone. In an instant he appeared directly in front of her, his lips were bleeding again, just like in the vision of his suffering he'd shown her.

"Look at me, you did this," he insisted, taking her arms to prevent her from running again. "Come back with me Boa, only you can save me."

Boa tried to pull away from him. Was he going to start using magic to frighten her now? Magic was something she could also use, but very little understood. If it came down to magic, then he would win.

"I'm sorry," she wailed, desperately trying to free herself.

The dog leapt excitedly around them, enjoying the tension, and becoming more and more aggressive.

"You're sorry? What is sorry to me?" he yelled. Boa sobbed as he brought his face close to hers so that she could not escape his words.

The dog tangled itself between them, and in it's angry state dug it's teeth into Boa's leg. Before she had even had the chance to kick it away, Carrion had used his magics to throw the dog hard against the nearest tree.

Boa looked at it in shock. The dog twitched as it's nerve endings buzzed for the last time, it's legs shaking rapidly, until it stopped and lay not breathing.

Boa hit Carrion hard on his arm, and then found herself hitting him anywhere she could reach with as much force as she could muster.

"Why did you do that?" she cried as she released all her anger upon him. "Why, why?"

Carrion let her hit him, her attacks were weakening with every blow. They were finished, even he could see that now. Boa stopped, her energy gone, her hysterical crying now long wails of pain and despair.

He had caused this, but she had done the same to him.

"I won't let you marry Hobb."

Boa's head was against his chest, she lifted it with great effort, her face blotched red, and her eyes stinging from all her tears.

"Why do you even care anymore?"

"I will not suffer whilst you are happy," he said. "You either return with me, or you will suffer too."

Boa's eyes filled with all the hate she could manage, hate for him, for what he had made her feel, and hate for his self imposed suffering. At that moment, she had as much pity for him as she did joy for the dead dog.

"I would rather die than have to see you again. You make me sick, I hate you! I never want to want to be near you again."

Boa watched the darkness in his eyes cloud over any friendship they had ever had, until all that was left was bitter hatred. She watched him walk towards her palace, knowing he would take the turning back to the docks, and finally out of her life.

Looking sadly at the dog, Boa walked towards it and gathered it into her arms. Sitting down beside the tree, she held the lifeless animal in her arms and cried over it's tiny body.


	24. The End

****

Chapter Twenty Three-- The End

Last Author's Note: Well, here it is, the final chapter! It actually turned out to be pretty sick, so finish your snacks now…just in case. I felt pretty sad uploading this, knowing it would be the last one. Well, here it is, at last. Hope you all enjoy!

****

Warnings: character death, violence.

The church was filling with people, all of them reaching across one another to shake hands with as many other guests as they could manage. Names were exchanged in the haze of happiness that this day was bringing to all. For some it had come as a surprise, but for most Princess' Boa's trip to Midnight had been for nothing but publicity. This had been planned long before.

King Klaus was welcoming everyone with a firm shake of the hand, royal protocol being put aside for the joyous day. Gifts were placed one on top of the other, ready to be taken to the newlyweds home.

The twilight Palace had been repainted to the highest standard imaginable, and was being refurbished as fast the decorators could manage. As soon as his daughter's engagement had been made known to him, King Klaus had decided that the palace should be given to her, and the Royal family move to an earlier hour.

The church was filling up fast, and the groom was hovering about looking overwhelmed. King Klaus was happy that his son, Prince Quiffin, was looking after the young man. He remembered his own wedding, and recalled the nerves he had suffered on that day. With that thought, he decided to leave the busy room and find his daughter.

Princess Boa was standing in a side room, gazing at herself in the mirror. Her eyes looked sad, and her mind seemed far away. He watched her for a moment, his heart filling with pride, but unable to ignore her expression.

"Boa?" he said softly. "Why aren't you smiling?"

Boa snapped out of her thoughts, and smiled as if she hadn't even heard his question.

"I'm ready," she said quickly, as if she thought he had come to fetch her.

King Klaus shook his head.

"We have some time yet," he said. "I want to apologise for not telling you of what had happened to your friend Lord Carrion. It must have been a great shock to you… I know that he came to visit you."

Boa looked away. After Lord Carrion's visit, Boa had given the dog to Finnegan, and told him to say that he had found it dead. She had told him the true story later, and after that Finnegan must have told her father.

"It was a shock," Boa said in a faraway voice. "His face… there was such… pain."

King Klaus walked towards her and took her hands in his, Boa smiled at him, but he could see that it was strained.

"Boa, I know you have doubts about today, and that's ok!" he said, stopping her from interrupting him with her protest. "I did too, on my wedding day. But it's just nerves, they'll pass and you'll know that you made the right choice. I'm so proud of you Boa, and Finnegan is a good man."

"Yes, I know."

"You'll be happy together," he said holding her close to him, her head resting on his chest. "I wouldn't have given my blessing to anyone else."

They both knew that he was speaking about Lord Carrion, but neither wanted to speak the words. Instead the thoughts remained firmly in their minds only.

Midnight was dark. The inhabitants were living in a limbo of fear and intimidation. Ever since the news escaped the Thirteenth tower about their Lord's chastisement, the hour had been quiet. Building work on Prince Carrion's new city had been called to a halt, workers were told to go home, without much hope of ever returning to their jobs.

There was a sense that something was coming along with the changing weather. Those that lived in Gorgossium, were used to storms over the city. They usually coincided with Mater Motley's moods, the weather being something that she enjoyed abusing her power over.

Whilst the storm crept over the city slowly, it's rulers sat watching it from a high tower window. Carrion was silent, and Motley was watching him. There had been no more mention of Princess Boa in Midnight, not since Lord Carrion had been maimed.

Today, the day of her wedding, Carrion sat staring out of the window, his eyes blank and unseeing. His grandmother hovered about him, watching, waiting, she had more plans for him, and his present state of mourning was no use to her at all.

"She is making a fool of you," she said mockingly, pulling a thread through a new carcase of a stitchling.

Carrion said nothing.

"Fool," she repeated.

"I've done all I can," Carrion said. He said no more, aware already that his words were not the ones she wished to hear.

"They all laugh at you now. Can't you hear them? All your precious subjects, those that you wanted to… _save from the dark_."

Her words drew him away from the window, her voice was mocking, and yet, it drew him towards her.

"Show them that no one refuses the Lord of Midnight," she demanded, "Make them fear the Carrion name. Make it strong, you are the only one left. Do it, or your family died in vain!"

She pulled a piece of paper from under her pile of dead skins, and passed it in to his waiting hands. He saw that it had been ripped from a book, Boa's book, the one he had stolen at his grandmother's request.

"You have been planning this all along," he said blankly. He felt numb inside, as if every feeling had been turned off.

"All I need is your blessing, and it is done."

Carrion stood, the hate inside him was consuming him. It felt as if all hope was gone from his life, so what did it matter if he lost his soul now?

"Do it," he said in a voice barely above a whisper.

He left her to it, whatever dark magic she was about to perform he wanted no part in. He might have signed the death warrant, but he didn't wish to watch.

Boa waited nervously, everyone was still chattering within the church, and the bridal march was yet to play. Turning her face to the window, Boa noticed the wind change. She stared at the trees, they had been leaning gently to the left, but had become deadly still all of a sudden. Without warning, the wind pushed them roughly to the right, and dead leaves whipped by the window.

Boa frowned, but thought no more of it. The music had begun to play, and her bridesmaids filed into the room, tweaking her dress straight and pushing her out of the door. Her father smiled as she took his arm, and they stood facing the double doors that would lead them up the aisle, and to her new life.

Boa took a deep breath. This was it, she was getting married. All that worry and fear had been for nothing, Carrion hadn't tried to stop the wedding after all. With that thought, she smiled, and as the doors opened anyone who saw her in that moment, would never have guessed that she'd had any worries at all.

Finnegan was looking at her nervously, shifting his gaze from her, and then back to the alter, but always with a smile. Boa looked at her brother, and they shared a secret sigh of relief. They were all free from Carrion, nothing could ruin this now.

King Klaus placed Boa's hand in Finnegan's and stepped away, to stand besides his son. The guests were seated, and a hush fell upon them all.

"Horrible weather," Finnegan whispered so only Boa could hear.

Boa nodded as the service began with the ceremonious words, traditional day vows of marriage.

"It just came out of no where!" Boa whispered back.

No one was paying them any attention now, all ears were on the vows, until a mighty crack of thunder interrupted the drone of the ceremony. There followed the sound of embarrassed laughter from those that had jumped in surprise.

Boa looked across at her brother, neither of them were laughing.

"I didn't see any lightning," Boa mouthed, her eyes wide with fear.

She looked up at the ceiling as the service continued.

"Are you ok?" Finnegan asked.

"I don't think that was thunder," she said sounding breathless. Boa felt her heartbeat racing, it was him, she knew it. He was going to do something to ruin her day, she would bet money upon him being the one changing the weather. She prayed that was all he had planned.

"Shall I tell him to hurry?" Finnegan asked.

Boa bit her lip as she thought, it would seem an odd request, but the sooner they were married the sooner she would be safe.

The people of Midnight ran for cover. Darting into shop doorways, and hiding behind anything that they thought might protect them. Windows were slammed shut, and the air was filled with terrified screams.

Rain and hail fell upon them from what seemed like all angles, and anyone left out in the open were reduced to huddling together, as close to the ground as they could manage. The weather seemed to be attacking them, with unnatural force. And as sudden as it began, it ceased.

There was a brief moment of relief, before a frightened cry rang out from someone in a high building. All eyes turned skywards, strained with terror and fear, their doom was upon them, and they were unprotected.

"Dragon!" the man up high called. "Flying beast!"

Fire streaked across the sky and the air became thick with smoke. The people of Midnight turned upon each other in a desperate bid to hide out of the way of the dragon. Shop doors were kicked to the ground, and houses broken into, in order for the frightened residents to seek shelter from the streets.

Lord Carrion watched the dragon circle his city, it's large powerful wings creating strong gusts of wind with every movement. It cried into the night sky, a low cry of longing. It was alive because of magic, and it was all alone, the only one of it's kind.

Carrion knew the other dragon's in the Abarat, wherever they were, would hear it's mournful cries, and fear it. There was no other dragon like it, and never had there been, it was the only one, a true monster.

Carrion smiled and he saw the glimpse of pain the in creature's eye. It knew, it understood his suffering, because it suffered too. He had not intended to watch, but the screaming from his people had drawn him to the window. He had listened to their distress in a state of wonder, for he had learned something revolutionary about himself: he enjoyed their pain.

The more they screamed, the more he smiled, and as the dragon set fire to their homes, he laughed. All sense of remorse was gone, and he was determined that he'd never feel it again. No one could ever make him love again, compassion was his past.

The dragon turned to fly towards him, it's eyes crazed and looking for blood. Carrion stood still, watching it fly towards him, the demonic smile still upon his face. Had it snatched him up in it's jaws at that moment, he would not have cared.

A part of him knew that he deserved to die, for such a crime as he was about to commit, but the dragon simply flew straight over him, and towards the day.

Boa smiled as the service came to an end. Finnegan took her hand to place the wedding band upon her finger, and the musicians began to play a happy tune of celebration. Their first married kiss was applauded, and Boa laughed as she was swept up into the air to be carried outside.

"We'll sign the documents later then?" she asked grinning. Clearly Finnegan had forgotten about that. He blushed.

But before he could put her down, the double doors to the church swung open with a loud crash, and the wind and rain rushed inside. The outside door was banging on the wall, as if someone had opened it and left it swinging.

Someone stood to close the swinging door, only to stop, alarmed as a giant black shadow swept across the entrance and disappeared.

The occupants in the room looked at each other nervously, the cold draught forgotten.

"There it is!" someone yelled as the shadow passed over a window.

Boa held Finnegan's arm tightly as he set her down.

"What is it?" she asked urgently.

He shook his head.

"I don't know."

An ear-splitting cry pained their ears, as the shadow passed across the doorway once more. Finnegan moved towards Quiffin to hear his opinion, only to be pulled back by Boa.

"Don't leave me!"

"I'll be one moment," he said as reassuringly as he could manage.

"No!" she insisted.

Something cracked above them, and all eyes shot skyward.

"The roof is on fire!" a woman yelled, pointing to the ceiling.

Panic overtook everyone, and as they scrabbled for the nearest exits, Boa felt herself being pushed this way and that, as they all headed for the doors and into the rain. Finnegan had hold of her hand, and was leading her to the nearest door at the back of the church.

Suddenly Boa felt something strong wrap around her middle, like an arm, and was pulled backwards. She screamed as what was around her began burning her skin. Whatever it was, was covered in acid, and what began as a mild discomfort soon became agony.

Boa's screams were so wretched that it hushed all other screams immediately. Finnegan had a second to turn to look at her, before she was so quickly pulled away from that all she seemed was a blur.

"Boa!" he shouted in vain.

Everyone parted as he rushed after her, the cerimonial sword that had been at his side, now in his hand, ready to cut down anyone who got in his way. He managed to get to the door in time to see Boa pulled out into the rain, her face contorted in agony and fear.

Having never seen a dragon before in his life, Finnegan froze with fear. For what seemed like an eternity he stared at the beast, and it stared back, seemingly smug. Tattared bits of Boa's wedding dress dripped out of it's mouth, along with a steady steam of blood.

Without thinking, Finnegan jumped forwards and stabbed the beast in the eye. It howled in pain, and flame shot from it's mouth as it tried to move away. It's huge body was too slow on the ground, and as it lifted it's head, Finnegan plunged the sword deeply into it's neck. The blade sliced through many veins, and hot acidic blood poured out onto the floor. The dragon, growling in pain tried to crawl away, knowing that it was dieing. It's eyes lost all focus, and it's final movement was to swing it's wings high into the air, before they crashed down, lifeless.

Finnegan felt his legs giving way underneath him, but an arm wrapped around him for support and pulled him right again. He saw it was Quiffin, the man's face stained red with tears.

"Come on, we ca… can't," he could barely speak through his tears and shock, but Finnegan knew what he meant.

Walking to the dead beast's throat, they began to hack at it's flesh until the tunnel to it's stomach was revealed. Quiffin reached inside, something burned his hand but he could barely feel the pain. Under his fingers was his sister's hand, and grasping tightly he pulled.

"Father!" he yelled hysterically. "Father!"

Finnegan collapsed, his breath seemed caught in his throat and he couldn't fill his lungs. The sound of people crying was unbearable, and covered his ears to the noise. When Boa was pulled free, he couldn't make himself look at her. Quiffin had dropped her instantly, to turn and retch.

Boa's father was the only one brave enough to take her into his arms, and her mother stroked her burned and matted hair.

"Boa, why?" they kept muttering.

Her skin was burnt, red and blistered, and she barely looked like Boa at all. Someone handed them some of the silks that had been decorating the church and they gently wrapped her up.

It seemed like forever that they stood there. The tears never stopped, but they quietened. The sky was filled with black clouds, and the light of the sun had been all but blocked out until they were in darkness.

It didn't take long before the tragic news spread across the Abarat, and with it the horror and shock. Rumours began to follow, including the strange events that had happened in Midnight moments before.

Theories were formed, but nothing was proved. Slowly life began to continue, but with a sense of innocence lost. Life changed for many, but never so much in Midnight. The reign of nightmares had begun.

End.


End file.
